"Should You "Friend" Your Students?"

In this article, Marsha Redd and Jeannine Ortiz argue if they, as educators, should accept the friend requests of their students on Facebook. Redd believes that if her students attempt to add her on Facebook, why shouldn't she accept? Redd goes on about how she is very friendly with her students at school and in the classroom and she doesn't see how it would be any different outside of school and online. Redd states that "It's perfectly acceptable to carry on a pleasant, "friendly" conversation outside the boundaries of the school building. I don't view the digital environment of Facebook as all that different from other public spaces." (11) On the other hand, Ortiz believes "we have to draw the line somewhere." (10) Ortiz sees that if a student becomes her "friend" on Facebook, then the teacher-student relationship can pretty much be kissed goodbye. She also feel that the personal lives of teachers shouldn't be something that their students need to know about because of the possibility of a bombardment of questions, the jeopardizing of their reputation among other things that professionals should be aware of. She suggests that there be some other educational based blog or website that can be used not only as an educational tool, but can always be a way to communicate with other students and teachers. I, personally, believe that "friending" a student on Facebook is only acceptable if they are a former student and if they are an adult or an "appropriate" age.

This article is great for those teachers who have a strong connection with their students and are not quite sure about the whole Facebook friend dilemma. When I was in high school, I was never friends with any of my professors, but in the past five years since I've graduated high school, I now have about five of my old teachers as my friends on Facebook. While it is a great way to keep in touch, instead of communicating with your students through Facebook, just keep that connection building in the classroom and at school. Face-to-face communication is always such a great way to build connections and relationships.

The ITSE NETS standard that I feel would fit the best for this article is standard five: Digital Citizenship. Students must learn what information is important to share over the internet and who it is safe to share it with. This is not saying that your teachers are not safe people to share information with, but if they have their teacher as a friend on Facebook, they (as well as the teachers) must be aware of what they are sharing with their friends and the rest of the world.

Ortiz, J. & Redd, M. (2009) Should You "Friend" Your Students? Learning & Leading with Technology, 37(1). 10-11. Retrieved from http://www.learningandleading-digital.com/learning_leading/200908#pg12.

"Wallwisher: A Geeky Teacher's Dream Tool"

Keith Ferrell writes an article about his favorite tool: Wallwisher. Wallwisher is a web based bulletin board that allows students to add their own text notes, pictures, ideas, videos, etc. This is a great way for students to collaborate and work together without necessarily being in the classroom and without it having to be through social media sites or plain emails. Ferrell explains some of the projects that he used Wallwisher for in his classroom which include collaboration of facts on a specific topic that each child can contribute to or a board where students can add tips to help other students in certain topic areas and add new vocabulary words and their definitions that may be helpful for their classmates. I feel that this is a great way to really engage kids in helping other students learn while learning themselves. As pictured above, this would probably work best in the classroom with the help of a smart board or even if the classroom is in a computer lab for a certain amount of time. Personally, I feel that this would work best outside of the classroom, that way students can keep coming back to the board to see if anybody has posted any new facts, topics, information, etc.

This article is great for teachers because it adds a new tool for them to get their kids learning together. I know that individual learning is what everybody is used to when growing up, but it's great for teachers to get their students to do some pieces of group work that way they are prepared for all the group projects that they will encounter in middle school and high school and college as well. Plus, teachers can keep an eye on the board to see who is participating and what is being posted so that there is no false information or inappropriate things being posted. Overall, I would definitely use this app in my classroom because I think it will end up benefiting everyone in the classroom.

The ISTE NETS standard for students I would choose that relates most to this article would be standard two: Communication and Collaboration. It says it all in the title, students would use this app to communicate and share with each other different pieces of information that other students may have not known and can benefit from, and all the students can collaborate together to build a "fact wall" or maybe a synonym chart for maybe certain vocabulary words they might be dealing with that week.

Ferrell, K. (2011) Wallwisher: A Geeky Teacher's Dream Tool. Learning & Leading with Technology, 38(7), 30-31. Retrieved from http://www.learningandleading-digital.com/learning_leading/201105#pg32

"I Have Something to Say"

In her article, Marla Runyan describes the use of iPods, iPads, and other tablets when helping students with disabilities have a voice. There is an app available called Proloquo2Go which gives students a picture accompanied with a word or phrase that helps them communicate what they want or need. The picture above shows the same concept but in paper form. Runyan explains how easily this app can be customized to fit individual students' needs. My mom has been working with children with learning disabilities for almost thirty years now and has been using the same technique but using laminated pieces of paper (similar to what is shown above) instead of an app. I have sat in on my mom's classroom when students are using these. To me they seem to be extremely helpful when young students with autism have not yet found their voice. It is amazing how, although these students cannot speak, they form sentences together to express their thoughts and feelings. While on the app it can speak the sentences that are formed, when used in classroom the "old school" way, the teachers and teachers' aids can speak the sentences they form which will give students more of a face-to-face connection. Runyan goes on to talk about all the features of this app, which include having one symbol represent an entire sentence or how you can organize things by categories.

As wonderful as this app is, one problem is the accessibility of the iPods or iPads. Some schools may have the budget to provide this kind of technology for their students, but what about when the students go home and their family doesn't have that kind of device? As I mentioned above, my mother's classroom has a binder full of different cards with words and pictures on them and velcro on the back of the cards. On the front of the binder are multiple strips of velcro so the students can grab a card and place it on the cover to indicate what they want. This is definitely a more inexpensive way of using the same concept. This would be great in a classroom where a child with a learning disability may have had to be integrated into a regular paced classroom. Said student may have a better way of communicating with their mentor (most students are accompanied by one when placed in classrooms like these), other peers, and even their teachers.

The ISTE NETS standard I would say fits best with this article is standard two: Communication and Collaboration. This article applies to this standard because with said app, students with disabilities can communicate and form sentences and express themselves through technology. This may also help students when sharing ideas or sharing information or bits of knowledge they wouldn't have been able to share before.

Runyan, Marla. (2011) I Have Something to Say. Learning & Leading with Technology, 39(1), 32-33. Retrieved from http://www.learningandleading-digital.com/learning_leading/201108#pg34

"Are Teachers Even Necessary?"

In the article by Diana Fingel, she briefly discusses two educator's blog posts about their idea about the "value of teachers" in the classroom. The first educator is Pernille Ripp, a 4th grade teacher who believes that teachers are one of the most important teaching tools in classrooms and should never be replaced by technology. She claims that "when we let videos be the only teaching tool for a child, or a computer program, then we stop figuring out why that child is not understanding. We lose that human connection that teachers provide." On the other hand, educator Lisa Nielson blogs about how teachers nowadays can be replaced by technology and how it could possibly be a good thing. She explains, "the reality for me is that I would have been much better off without the teachers in my life weighing me down and wasting my time." Although her experience as a student with a teacher was not a positive one, she does go on to explain that teachers are good tools, just not good for everyone.

This article can be great for teachers because it can give them other options when they see students who may be struggling in their classrooms. I can understand how some teachers may find it difficult to grasp the concept that they are not helping their students, but some students learn differently than others. This article (which lists both teacher's blog links) can help teachers use different technical tools to teach, giving their students multiple ways of learning and understanding the material.

If I had to choose an ISTE NETS standard for students that related most to this article, I would have to say standard six: Technology Operations and Concepts. This standard fits best because students would have to understand how to use certain pieces of technology in order for them to participate in the lesson. Students must also use the proper applications in order to be "effective and productive."

Fingel, Diana. (2012) Are Teachers Even Necessary? Learning & Leading with Technology, 39(6), 5. Retrieved from http://www.learningandleading-digital.com/learning_leading/20120304#pg7

"To Flip or Not to Flip?"

Johnathan Bergmann and Derrick Waddell voice their opposing views on the new concept of flipped classrooms. Bergmann believes that with a flipped classroom, students go from boring classroom lectures to a "learner-centered, problem-based, inquiry-driven hub of learning."  Bergmann also believes that by letting the children teach themselves the material, they can learn whichever way is easiest to them whether it be via videos or through their textbooks. Waddell, on the other hand, disagrees with Bergmann's ideas of flipping the classroom. Waddell wonders "why aren't we finding innovative ways for our students to collect, collaborate  and create instead of new ways to simply consume information?" Waddell also has the students in mind who may not always have access to a computer or internet at home all the time. What are those students going to do when they are supposed to watch videos online to learn?

This article is good for teachers who are considering flipping their classrooms. Bergmann believes that it's a great idea, but one still has to think about if just a lesson is going to be flipped, which subject is going to be flipped, etc. This article gives teachers, and future teachers, some pros and cons about the new style of flipped classrooms.

The ISTE NETS standard I feel fits best with this article is standard three: Research and Information Fluency. I feel that this standard fits best because with a flipped classroom, students are forced to go home and (mainly) use digital media to teach themselves the concepts that would otherwise be taught in lectures. Not only would the students be using digital media to locate the videos of the lectures online, but some students may branch out and dive deeper into the internet world to find some information that pertains to the subject they are teaching themselves.

Bergmann, J. & Waddell, D. (2012) To Flip or Not to Flip? Learning & Leading with Technology. 39(8), 6-7. Retrieved from http://www.learningandleading-digital.com/learning_leading/20120607#pg8

Information Literacy Discussion

To effectively search for information you should make sure to use proper terms and search techniques while using your specific search engine. Some good search techniques are using quotation marks around words or phrases you want to keep together in the search, e.g. "state flower." Another way to effectively search for information is to use the advanced search tool. This will give you more options to narrow down your search, e.g. domain type, language.

Once you have found a site you think has good information, check to make sure it is credible. Some of these ways are by checking the publisher, the author, if the article or journal is peer reviewed, the type of writing, and the date it was published. Usually if the publishing date is older, the information may not be quite up to date and reliable. Another important way of checking to see if a website is credible is by checking the domain type. Usually, .com is the domain that is going to need the most research of it's credibility.

"Lights, Camera, Learning!"

In Glen Bull and Lynn Bell's article, they dive into the many uses of videos in the classroom. Since the transition of video went from analog to digital, the possibilities and accessibility of videos is incredible. Bull and Bell give excellent examples of how digital video can help in science, social studies, mathematics, and English language arts. In science, videos can be useful for examining and exploring natural phenomena. They explain that with the options of rewind, slow motion, extensive zoom, etc. students will be able to observe, infer, classify, predict, measure, communicate, and hypothesize easier. For social studies, documentaries and Hollywood's interpretations of certain historical events can give students a little bit better idea of what happened or what might have happened in the past. Many students are more visual learners, so this definitely helps in the understanding of historical content. Digital video can be useful in mathematics because it gives students mathematical models that can be broken down and examined in a more entertaining way. Last, Bell and Bull explain that digital video can be used in English language arts because students are always making new videos, taking new pictures, etc. and this can be a way of communicating ideas to each other and especially communicating ideas in presentations. So many people nowadays believe that videos and movies and digital media are harmful to students' intelligence, but this article proves that digital media have so many other uses aside from just entertainment. Overall, this just explains how much videos affect students in the classroom in positive ways.

This article is great for teachers just entering the teaching career and even those who have been teaching for a long time. This article can give examples to teachers about how to use all types of media (digital or not) into their classroom for easier understanding by the students. I would definitely use this article to help give me a few ideas how to encourage all types of learning in the classroom using videos.

With this specific article, the teacher and students standards can both be applicable, but the ISTE NETS standard for students I believe this article relates most to would be standard one: Creativity and Innovation. These digital videos can give students "models and simulations" that they can explore and help them learn new ideas and pieces of information. Also, they can use digital media to help them creatively express their own ideas on a certain topic to discuss with the classroom.

Bull, G. & Bell, L. (2009) Lights, Camera, Learning! Learning & Leading with Technology 36(8), 30-31. Retrieved from http://www.learningandleading-digital.com/learning_leading/20090607#pg32