The end of this semester also means the end of my academic career at St. John's (for the immediate future). Strangely enough, the lyrics from Adele's Academy Award winning theme song "Skyfall" come to mind:

"This is the end. Hold your breath and count to ten"

At this point, I am so appreciative of the opportunity I had to explore and use these new technology tools and strategies in the classroom. This truly is the end of one chapter but the beginning of another, one that has the potential to be a truly awarding experience teaching young minds how to think. Having these new tools is central to achieving this aim and I hope that WebQuests, movie-making, blogs. etc. will form a significant component of curriculum in the future. I for one will be actively incorporating these valuable tools into my lessons in order to enhance and improve instruction for the benefit of al students. It was a very rewarding and valuable experience and I will carry the lessons learned here with me into my teaching career and beyond.

Class 04/25/13:

We presented our movie on Childhood Obesity tonight and I believe it went very well. The first two groups had amazing projects chock full of interactive skits, pop culture references and ample amounts of differentiation which amplified the overall effectiveness and value of their movies. I was particularly drawn to the entry on teen pregnancy as it remains one of the most troubling, significant and immediate concerns of parents and teachers in this day and age.

Although our movie was more information-heavy and monotonous, we were able to supplement it with personal, real-life experiences to enhance the overall viability and effectiveness of our presentation. In this manner, we improved our movie's relevance and realized that some honest mistakes could actually be construed as light-hearted, comedic moments to break the constant seriousness and professional direction of the news report.

Class 04/18/13:

I was heartened to go over the instructions in more detail to prepare for the movie project. Our group has finalized plans to discuss childhood obesity and its effect on those people involved  as well as its impact on the US. Now the task is to collect the details and supporting information to round out the project and make it an effective and informative learning tool.

Class 04/04/13:

We began brainstorming for our group projects and I was happy to see the wide array of ideas that were being floated around.  If we have ample time and resources, I'm hopeful we can create an informative, interesting and insightful project that increases learning for as many in our audience as possible.

The Streamline
by Matthew Trimboli

 

          As we venture into the high-tech world of new technologies, it is always beneficial to consider what new tools and strategies will aid our efforts to enhance instruction and engage all learners.  For myself, the creation of teacher and classroom websites is a critical component in effectively integrating technology into the content and pedagogy of lessons due to its potential for improving learning and building relationships. 

 



 

          Teaching in an environment where even portable TVs and overhead projectors are not readily available, I relish the prospect of being able to create teacher and classroom websites to "streamline" the plethora of events, activities and communiques that comprise a full school year for most teachers.  To "streamline" teaching means to categorize and coordinate all of those processes into a centralized source, which the websites represent, while providing students and parents multiple conduits for locating and completing work, communicating with the teacher and remaining up to date with material. 

 



 

           Instead of wasting class time writing directions and expectations on the blackboard, I can post them all to the websites in advance so students can access them anytime.  Additionally, a website that is thoroughly and carefully designed will allow students to refer back to notes, lessons and assignments that they may have missed due to absence, field trips, extracurricular activities, etc.  At the same time, parents have access to a virtual mainframe that contains most of the assignments, materials and information their children are responsible for over the course of a school year.  When used in conjunction with regular communication, these websites are a powerful tool for developing and sustaining positive, proactive relationships between students, parents and teachers.  All parties have new opportunities for remaining in regular contact with each other, which translates into increased levels of trust, understanding and cooperation since they will all be equally informed about their respective work, expectations and responsibilities.  Such is the potential of classroom and teacher websites...

 

 

Three Questions:

 

1) As new technologies become more specialized and complex, will it be feasible and 

    advantageous for school districts to implement programs that promote the use of

    classroom and teacher websites?
 

2) How will we measure the projected benefits and drawbacks of using new tools such as

     these personal websites once they are widely implemented in schools?

 

3) Could education possibly become a completely virtual field in the future as learning
     and instruction increasingly transition into online formats?

Class 3/21/13:

I was pleased that we reviewed the procedures for composing webquests on Digication.  Unlike PowerPoint, this database is much more limited in the animation/visual/audio creativity department but compensates by allowing you to categorize information more easily into text, gallery, multimedia, etc. However, I acquired a number of good ideas for enhancing the initial draft which will hopefully improve its overall quality. Combined with images and other multimedia, it will hopefully lead to a more thorough, concise and interesting presentation.

Tools of

Transformation

by Matthew Trimboli

 

With the advent of new technologies, teachers are in a prime position to radically alter the means by which new knowledge is acquired and generated among students.  As a result, it is incumbent upon educators to design clear, appropriate instruction that seeks to meet current standards while also ensuring that real learning occurs.  Responsible, dedicated teachers will gradually assimilate those techniques, materials and tools that prove themselves to be truly beneficial to the learning process, while also remaining vigilant for bias and other defections in online materials that render them inappropriate for classroom use.  Games represent one such tool but most assuredly require evaluation on a case-by-case basis to determine the aforementioned qualities in order to determine their appropriateness for in-class use.

From my experience, computer and video games possess a trove of benefits for enhancing learning through their interactive, stream-lined approach, which engages students in accomplishing certain objectives through the use of intricate storylines. These stories motivate students to utilize not only memorization and recall, but deeper thinking skills such as analysis, summarization, strategizing, etc. to develop solutions to the numerous challenges encountered over the course of the game. Additionally, in many cases this approach fosters stealth learning (Maloy, Verbock-O’Loughlin, Edwards & Woolf, 2011, p.193) because the students are so immersed in the games they do not realize that they are acquiring new strategies and knowledge.

 

Math Blaster and Zoombinis Logical Journey are two of the programs mentioned by the text that I can personally attest to having a real value in providing effective, meaningful learning experiences.  Using them in my own childhood, I now realize how valuable they were in helping me understand different concepts and use deeper metacognitive skills to solve problems or challenges presented in the game.  In Math Blaster: The Search for Spot, the player must compete as Blasternaut in a race against time to rescue Spot, his robotic assistant, who has been kidnapped by the evil trash alien, a malevolent figure whose trademark is leaving a trail of garbage in his ship’s wake.  Utilizing concepts such as addition, subtraction, estimation, etc. to complete the assignments, players are able to practice and refine their basic math skills while also employing deeper thinking skills in order to solve certain equations.  The same holds true in the sequels Math Blaster: Secret of the Lost City and Reading Blaster: Invasion of the Word Snatchers and even expands upon the use of deeper thinking and comprehension skills.

 

 

The Logical Journey of the Zoombinis follows a similar format in that you have to help a group of displaced beings find a new home by traversing a number of perilous obstacles.However, whereas the Math Blaster games relied heavily on recall and memorization, the Zoombinis’ activities are all based on experimental, trial-and-error scenarios that require closer attention to specific patterns and details to solve them successfully.As a result, the Zoombinis’ is a far more attractive game for instilling the deeper metacognitive skills students’require in order to truly comprehend their learning.

Games offer a great benefit when utilized with clear objectives and appropriate content.  Avoiding the mindless violence and gore of such titles as Grand Theft Auto, Resident Evil, etc. is of paramount importance if we wish to avoid creating the opposite effect with our students.  If current research is to be believed, these types of games desensitize players and increase violence, aggression and rage among them, a troubling finding given their widespread use and popularity.  Consequently, it is incumbent upon parents and educators to instill the importance of utilizing positive and productive games that do not rely on death and destruction.

Three Questions:

1) What sources exist for locating more programs like Math Blaster and Zoombinis?

2) Does overexposure to computer/video games diminish childrens' imaginations?

3) How can we strike a balance between technology and tradition when learning?