Field Observation 2

For Almira Academy to be an inner city school, the school has more technology than you would think. There are smart boards in every classroom, and at least four computers in each class as well. Mrs. Andersen runs the computer lab which holds more than 30 computers. In fact, all if these technologies are in working order and readily available, with the exception of the computer lab, which can be reserved for lessons–depending upon vacancies–by signing a log that is located in the computer lab.

Access to different online web 2.0 applications is a different story. Although there are two separate Wi-Fi networks at the school: one for staff and the other for guests, Almira students have no access to any social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook, Kik, etc. while in the computer lab. Other than popular social media sites, as far as I can tell, the students are permitted to access a varied of websites.

There are no laptops or iPads being utilized in the building, and they are prohibited from bringing their cell phones into the classroom. In fact, the students’ cell phones are confiscated upon entering the building, and then returned at the end of the day as they exit the building.

Do Technologies Make Us Smarter?

Salmon, G. & Perkins, D. (2005) Do Technologies Make Us Smarter? Intellectual Amplification With, Of and Through Technology. Notes:

FRAMING THE PROBLEM

What sorts of technologies are the authors focusing on in the article?

• technical tools (the pencil)
• symbol systems (spoken language)
• the sciences and their notations (mathematics)
• intelligent instruments (interactive concept mapping tools)

Many claims have been made regarding how technologies enhance cognitive functioning

• medical/nutritional technologies improve cognitive functioning as a side effect of improving general health
• telescopes, the printing press, and the telephone help put things closer in space and time and also have cognitive impacts through making information readily available
• technologies that facilitate or carry out cognitive works such as the calculator or word processors; writing, mathematical notation, and musical notation are symbol systems that help carry out cognitive work

EFFECTS WITH TECHNOLOGY

• emerge through the interaction when certain intellectual functions are downloaded onto the technology (spell check, computing, ready rearranging) which establish an intellectual partnership with the user
• these partnerships free the user from the distractions of lower-level cognitive functions which leads to improved intellectual performance
• concept mapping software allows constructing complex webs of relationships that would be difficult to envision mentally or represent through conventional sentences and paragraphs
• the development of mathematical notations are symbol systems that are considered technologies, enable lines of mathematical inquiry that otherwise would have been too complex to compute

COGNITIVE TECHNOLOGIES — technologies that enhance cognitive functioning through directly affording cognitive support

• technologies that afford substantial support of complex cognitive processing (making people smarter in the sense of enabling them to perform smarter)
• working with technology makes us smarter, in a sense, because it leads to smarter performance
• BUT do experiences with cognitive technologies develop cognitive capabilities that remain available without the tool at hand?

DISCUSSION: Given the parameters set out by the article, do the tools that you are working with make you smarter? If so, how so.  If not, why not?

I feel like the article addresses a variety to technological tools that we use to carry out our daily tasks; however, I’m not sure if they are making us ‘smarter.’ In my opinion, technology enhances our performance. It makes tasks easier to complete and to enables us to complete our tasks in a timely manner, where as, without technologies some of our efforts would be extremely time consuming.

Field Observation

I have been placed at Almira Academy (K-8) for my prestudent and student teaching requirements. Almira is located on West 99^th street off of Lorain Avenue in Cleveland, Ohio. The lower West side is a community populated with mostly working class citizens. In fact, 100% of the students that attend Almira Academy receive free school lunch, and free breakfast as well.

Although Almira is located in an impoverished community, it has been named an ‘Investment School,’ which only thirteen schools in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District have been offered this opportunity. The primary goal is to increase performance through establishing a partnerships amongst staff, parents and citizens within the community. Fortunately, every classroom has four to five computers depending on the number of students in the class, and each class also has a Smart Board. There is one computer lab in the building, where there are thirty-three computers. This allows the teachers at Almira to incorporate technology into their lessons. The computer lab instructor seems willing to assist if assistance is needed.

There is a printer on each floor of the school. Having multiple printers/copiers decreases traffic and relieves stress that not having these technologies may cause a teacher. I have noticed that paper is a hot commodity amongst the teachers. Each teacher must bring their own paper to the printer and load it themselves; removing the paper once they have finished using the printer.

My cooperating teacher Miss Wright tries to incorporate technology in her lessons regularly. She has broken the class into small groups, and one of the objectives of the lesson will be to complete a Web Quest on the computers in the classroom. Miss Wright stated that, because the election is approaching, she will reserve time in the computer lab and show the students how to register to vote. Miss Wright plays classical music during class that she finds on Youtube.

I have taught two 6^th grade math lessons at Almira Academy. For the first lesson, I created a PowerPoint and provided the students with guided notes so they could follow along during the lecture. After the lecture, we played a fraction memory game. For the second lesson, I broke the class into three small groups and rotated them between three activities. The first activity was a card game where they had to simplify the fraction that was place in front of them. The second activity utilized the computers in the classroom. The students competed against one another to see who could make it to level 5 of the Pac Mac computer game where they had to find reduced fractions (click here to check it out!). The last activity consisted of the small group working on a few problems with me so I could ensure each student grasped the concepts I had introduced.

At this point, I do not see anything regarding technology that would impede the students’ learning.

Video Games Blog 3

Welcome back! I have been playing 100 Balls more and I have made a few new discoveries! First off, I realized that the longer you play, the faster the cups circle around the conveyor belt. Also, if you fail to capture any balls in one of your cups, you lose that cup (which is a bad thing). The more cups you have, the greater your chances are of capturing more balls which increases your score! So, the object of 100 Balls is to capture as many balls as possible. The more balls you catch, the longer the duration of your turn, the more points you receive! Cool!

Playing 100 Balls helped me realize how I could incorporate video games in my math class. I could design a game similar to 100 Balls to help students practice basic arithmetic. The Gee article describes how we are to create experts out of our students by helping them master material learned in the classroom.

The game I could create would help strengthen learned skills by challenging them to quickly solve addition, subtraction, multiplication and division problems. The more problems they answer correctly, the faster the game would go– thus helping with automaticity. In the game, I would add an option that would allow my students to choose whether to play the easy, intermediate or difficult level. However, at times, I will require them to attempt the level that I feel would help them strengthen their skills.

During class, allowing students to play the video game would offer a time where I can have one on one time with my at risk students. Because the game keeps track of their scores, I am able to monitor my students’ progress.

Until next time! Peace.

Video Games Blog 2

Hello again! In my last blog we discussed video games and how much difficulty I was having with the simple task of choosing a game. At the end, I selected a game called 100 Balls. The reviews made the game seem really fun and I was actually enthusiastic about getting a chance to play the game.

The first time I opened the app, 100 Balls, I was a little confused. Upon opening the app, you have what looks like some sort of reservoir filled with several yellow balls and two grey balls. At this point I was hoping I would be able to choose a level i.e. easy, intermediate, difficult, but the game forces you simply start playing (since the only button you have the option of pressing is the ‘start button’).

When I pressed the start button, several cups began to move counterclockwise along what appeared to be a conveyor belt. As the cups move, in order to release the balls from the reservoir, you have to tap the screen. For a small amount of balls, you quickly tap the screen, and for a larger amount of balls you slowly tap the screen.

While playing, the object of the game seemed to be to catch as many balls as possible in the cups; however, during the process of catching the balls, new cups would appear. At this point I am not sure if this changes the way the game should be played. I wondered if I were supposed to be catching yellow balls in the yellow cups, green balls in green cups, etc. I’ll keep playing and see what I can figure out!

Video Game Blog 1

I have never really played video games, so finding a game was pretty difficult for me. I skimmed the list of games that Dr. Shutkin provided; however, none of the games there really peaked my interests. I even asked my husband to help me find a game to play. Since he has a XBox and a PlayStation, and he loves to play all sorts of games, I figured that he could help me find an interesting game to play. Unfortunately, after two hours of my husband being completely annoyed with how horrible my attempts were at playing three different sports games, he gave up and told me to try to download a game on my phone–which was annoying to me because I despise all those invites my Facebook friends send requesting that I try new games.

Nonetheless, I opened the App store on my phone and commenced searching for a game that would be easy to learn how to play. I figured all I had to do was type ‘game’ in the search engine of the App store and a game would simply appear. I soon found out even that wasn’t as easy as I’d expected. There were tons of results: games, games for free, free games (which I am unsure of the difference between this and the prior), games for girls, gamestop, football games, car games, games for adults, etc. The only option I didn’t see was ‘easy games’, so I decided, maybe ‘games’ was too broad. I erased ‘games’ and typed ‘easy games’. What a mess! That entry brought up all kinds of language apps that help people learn different languages. So, I decided to try my luck with my original entry.

     After being relieved that ‘free games’ and ‘games for free’ displayed the same choices of games, I discovered that these lists would be the wisest search since I will not be purchasing a game for my phone. After scrolling through what felt like a million games and reading a zillion reviews and the permissions, I finally decided to download a game called 100 balls. By what I can tell so far, all I have to do is time my cup (which is on some kind of conveyor belt) just right so I can catch the balls in my cup! Sounds easy enough! I’ll let you know how it goes!

 

 

P.S. Maybe I should have searched ‘games for dummies’ 😉

Knowledge is power…

BlogPost 1: Class Survey

Personal Information:

1.) My name is Brittany Webb

2.) I am from Shaker Heights, OH

3.) Picture Inserted

4.) My husband and I have four children–three boys and one girl. I love spending time with my family. We love books, so we spend a lot of time at the library. We also enjoy playing games, going for bike rides and going to Edgewater beach. We love going to the zoo, the art museum and my kids are always excited to check out the latest movies.

Learning style and more:

5.) My level of comfort within the classroom would have to be extremely high in order for me to feel comfortable taking intellectual and creative risks in a course. I would have to feel respected in the class by my professor and my classmates. The classroom environment would also play a crucial role in whether or not I would feel comfortable taking risks within a course. I would need to know that everyone is given a fair opportunity to voice their opinions without consequence, even if their opinions refute the instructor’s argument. 

Technology Section:

6.)  I would have to say that the internet is the most important technological invention in history. Although plenty of other things have been invented before the internet that hold greater significance, such as the wheel and the light bulb, the internet does some pretty amazing things. The internet is amazing because it allows people from all over the world to communicate with one another, enables people to search topics in seconds, to make purchases without leaving the comforts of their home, watch a concert performed by a favorite artist etc. 

7.) The internet and my cell phone are two essential technologies that are essential to my life.

8.) On a scale from 1 to 10, my experience working with computers is a 9, digital media is a 5, and social media is a 6. I have worked with computers for over 15 years and am comfortable working with Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Access. I have less experience with Digital and Social media.

About Dr. Shutkin

9.)  Do you enjoy dancing?