JDevaud

I definitely agree with this view. The teachers that I plan with and I frequently discuss that the order our units are in make no sense because there is no flow. We would just move around the units to make more sense but we cannot do that because we have benchmarks every two units. Sometimes I will even catch students saying "why didn't we learn this back in unit _?" Every year I get extremely frustrated that I have to teach mixtures but am told I am not allowed to teach compounds which makes it very difficult and limiting. We are definitely trained to teach to the test. Students are only supposed to know what is on the standardized test and that is it yet we are also told to extend. We have literally been told after walk throughs from the board that we should not be teaching certain things because they are not on the test. I also find limited resources to be very disabling. I did not have a presenter until my fourth year of teaching and I didn't have a smart board until my fifth year. Every year I would get trained to death on incorporating all this new fancy technology but never had the resources to do it. Every year I would get marked down for not using technology even though I didn't have it. Now I finally have a smart board and I have to train myself to use it even though I've been trained three times because I've never had one to practice on. We are told constantly to DI DI DI DI ..... but then the tests are all standardized and usually not allowed to be modified. UDL is supposed to have very basic goals yet the goals in our curriculum guides are very specific. Like you said, I could go on.  **Appetizer:**  For my appetizer I chose to watch the four videos from lesson builder. I really liked the videos because they did a great job of summing up what UDL is and why it is important. We are teaching a very diverse group of students so they "one size fits all" method of teaching can no longer work. Every persons brain process differently so we need to customize for our students. We need to use technology to include all learners in the learning process. UDL is essentially a philosophy that allows teachers to rethink critical elements of teaching such as goals, materials, methods,and assessments.  **Main Course:** 1. What is the basic idea that the students need to learn? 2. What are different ways to learn this idea: demonstration? games? shared experience? 3. If there is reading involved, do they have to read it by themselves, or can they use other tools and strategies to get the information?
 * So what do I want to leave you with? Well, as you are designing your lessons, think about the following questions as stated by Howard (2004): **

4. Is a test the best way to find out whether students learned the information? 5. In what different ways can students show their understanding? Which will be meaningful for them?
 * When you think about assessing your students: **

I read an article about questions you need to ask yourself before planning a UDL lesson. I found the questions interesting because they are things I already ask myself on a daily basis. When I first started teaching middle school I did everything straight out of the pacing guide because that is what I was told to do. Then everything changed and we no longer had a pacing guide. We had the concepts we were supposed to teaching but not the ways in which to teach them. That changed my ways of teaching. Now I have special ed and my ways have changed yet again and I naturally ask myself those 3 questions constantly. When I assess my students with an assessment that I make, I do make sure that I am assessing each student the way that is best for them. However, I can not say the same thing for the State and County assessments. **Dessert : )** I explored Principle 1 for my dessert and I found something I found amazing!!!! I was looking through a couple different tools and I came across Photo Peach http://photopeach.com/ This site allows you to create slide shows that are completely engaging and it seems very easy to use. You upload actual pictures or images you have saved and then add in music, captions, or comments. Not only can you make your own but there are also a ton of already made slide shows categorized by subjects. There were 52 pages of slide shows just for science alone. I think these slide shows are great for engagement pieces at the beginning of a unit or at the end to sum up information. We just did a project on constructing an earthquake proof structure. I took a ton of pictures of each class so I could easily load those pictures onto this website, add some music, and add comments taken from their reflections. This is also a great tool for the students to use in place of power points. I feel that there are many barriers in traditional assessments. My school has not made AYP in three years so we have non stop meetings with people from the Board of Education and all over. We always leave those meetings incredibly irritated because they tell us that we need to DI, DI, DI, DI and they will be able to pass the test. We then say if we are supposed to DI everything (which we do), then why are the tests not Differentiated? All of these standardized tests are basically teaching the students ability to read and comprehend. Every single student takes the same exact test regardless of their learning style. Yes, the special ed students have modifications such as having it read to them and extra time but they are also taking the same test. When we ask that question, no one seems to have an answer for us. So why are teachers busting their butts to DI when standardized tests are all the same. Practice what you preach. When I assess in class, I generally offer various ways for my students to prove to me that they mastered the topic. A limitation to that is the grading. It is very difficult to make a universal rubric that covers all student options. It is also very time consuming to create a rubric for each option. Plus, some of my students would completely shut down if I gave them options. They need to know exactly what I want them to do and how I expect them to do it. So I have to know which students would not benefit from options and give them the option I think suits them best. It all comes down to what I think is the number one challenge in teaching, TIME!!! // Given the realities of our modern age and the demands of our children’s future, is it really okay to allow teachers to choose whether or not they incorporate modern technologies into their instruction? //
 * Reflection # 4 What barriers are inherent in traditional assessments? What are the challenges in offering varied options for assessment?**
 * Reflection #5**__

I do not believe that it is okay to allow teachers to choose whether or not they incorporate modern technologies into their instruction. What we've been learning about this whole time is that technology is taking over. Growing up, I was never on facebook, myspace, instant messenger or even an email. When I got to college I felt completely illiterate when it came to technology and I felt like I grew up in the stone age. Since then, technology has improved dramatically and many times our students are more advanced than the teacher. Students are also very passionate about technology so that may be how many of them learn best. There are also many ways in which you can incorporate technology; senteos, interactive labs, power points, Brain Pop, airliners, smart board, laptops for research, etc. It is incredibly easy to incorporate at least one piece of technology in each lesson.

There are also some barriers when it comes to technology. Lack of resources is a huge one. My school has almost a 1,000 students and we have only three computer labs and one set of laptops. We have to sign up for computers way in advance to even get in. Then when we get to the lab a bunch of the computers don't even work or they're missing headphones. If there is really such a push for technology they need to make sure that technology is readily available to us. Teachers also need to be trained in all the technology available. For three or four years I had nothing but an overhead presenter. Then all at one time I get a document camera, presenter, airliner, and a smart board. I had all of those cool things but I had no clue how to use anything.

Our society is relying more and more on technology and we need to make sure we are keeping up. Our students are quickly surpassing us is their abilities and we need to go with it and help them learn the way they learn best. Becoming more familiar with technology will also benefit ourselves because technology is taking over; ATMs, online banking, Redbox, online books and texts, grocery shopping online, online classes, etc. When people apply for jobs now there is always a technology piece, must be familiar with.... We not only need to incorporate technology to keep our students engaged in learning but also to prepare for life....

READING QUESTIONS

Edit 00 6…

Reading. Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants

//Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants// (course binder, tab 3) 1. According to Marc Prensky, define the term, “Digital Native.” The new students of today. They are "native speakers" of the digital language of computers, video games and the Internet.

2. What does it mean to have a “digital immigrant accent”? It means that you are stuck in the old ways; printing emails, printing papers in order to edit, calling people into your office rather than emailing. They are trying to use the technology but can't fully commit to it.

3. Identify one reason why Digital Natives have no patience for lectures or step-by-step logic. They have no patience for it because they need everything given to them at a fast pace, step-by-step is simply too slow for them.

4. What is one suggestion that Prensky advises Immigrant Teachers to try with their Native Students? Immigrant teachers need to take advantage of their kids to help them learn and integrate. We need to teach both Legacy and Future content in the language of the Digital Natives.

5. See course binder, tab 3, page 4B. “Learning Preferences of the Digital Generation.”

Select one entry from each side of the chart. Provide a comment as to whether you agree with the finding or not. Random access to hyperlinked multimedia- agree, this allows students to further their understanding if necessary

Educators prefer to provide text before pictures,sounds, color, and video- disagree. I believe teachers do the opposite because the pictures, sounds, color, and videos are all part of the engagement piece to get the kids excited.

Reading. 60-Second Guide to Digital Classrooms

http://edudemic.com/2012/02/digital-classroom-guide/

1. Highlight 3 interesting points shared in this article. How much cheaper is it to buy online texts rather than actual books

1.5 million Ipads are already being used in schools

You can actually rent textbooks electronically This all seems really cool but are the schools going to supply the Ipads or Kindles to each student or are the students going to buy their own? (Barrier)

Reading. Need a Cheat Sheet for Social Media?

http://www.searchenginejournal.com/need-a-cheat-sheet-for-socal- media/39546/

1. Explain in 5 – 10 sentences. Did the organization of this graphic help you compare and contrast the information, or did the organization confuse you? Why? Why not? I did like the way that the information was presented. The organization did help me to compare and contrast the information. I liked how they started with a brief introduction to what each resource was and then got into the pros and cons of each resource. After you reviewed the pros and cons you can decide which ones you are interested in then scroll down and see how to get started on each site. I would also change a few things. If this graphic is meant for businesses, the graphic at the very bottom about audience should be underneath the pros and cons. Maybe it isn't worth having a DIGG account if it only reaches a small audience. I would also attach a detailed direction sheet to the how to begin portion.

//**Reading. Ten ways schools are using social media effectively**// //**http://www.eschoolnews.com/2011/10/21/ten-ways-schools-are-using-social- media-effectively/**// //**1. Explain your answer in 5 – 10 sentences.**//

//**One of the ways a school district is utilizing social media in its schools is by using Gaggle.net. Do you think your school system would benefit from having Gaggle? Why? or Why not?**//

I think Gaggle.net is an absolute necessity for all schools. I never knew it existed but it sounds extremely beneficial to the school system. It is ridiculous how many things get blocked at school. Students have to go through a bunch of folders to get to school approved sites and then spend a ton of time going through very unhelpful sites to try to get information. Trying to do science fair projects with my students was awful. I had to tell many of them to go home and google information because the approved sites were worthless. When a teacher wants to find information, they google. Students should have this option as well and with Gaggle, they can. Gaggle will open students and teachers up to so much more because not only can they "gaggle," they can also get on youtube!!!! Why do we not have Gaggle already?