Jimmy+Thomas

EDU 240 Jimmy's FINAL ** 1.    As **//COGNITIVE MEDIATOR//**, the educator helps students to become independent learners who construct meaning by combining new information with their own background knowledge.
 * TECHNOLOGY IN EDUCATION
 * Discuss two assignments that you completed using a South Dakota State Standards topic in your major area of study. Describe each program and then tell how you could use that program with your students to enhance their technology skills when you start teaching.

A. I thought creating the Jeopardy game was really interesting. It is a great tool to use in classrooms to help students learn using a game. It was also very easy to create because it used Powerpoing, which I am very familiar with. I think I will definately use both Powerpoint and Jeopardy when I teach. Powerpoint is a great program that everyone can use. It is very easy, and I think it will benefit my students. They can create their own presentations that will help them learn. Jeapardy is also a fun tool to use with students, and I will use it for review for many different topics. Powerpoint is an effective tool that students can use to create their own presentations, and I will definately use it as a teacher.

B. Another program that I used was the Clickable worksheet and scavenger hunts. This was very easy to creat using Microsoft Word, and it is a fun way to learn. Having students go online to different websites to find the answers is a great way for them to learn. They are not just reading a textbook or listening to the teacher, but finding the answers themselves using technology. Microsoft Word is an easy program to use, especially with clickable worksheets. I could have my students use Microsoft word for many different things, like improving their writing, or research skills, like in a clickable worksheet. Microsoft Word is a great program to have and I will definately use it as a teacher. **    2.     As **//RESEARCHER//**, the educator seeks to improve educational practices within the school setting, using an inquiry approach to serve students more effectively. I learned so much during this class. researching many different topics has helped me learn so much more about them. Simply by reading the book, I learned a lot about different technology tools that I could use in my classroom. Also, by researching itunes for my presentation, I learned so much about it. I had no idea it had over 100 applications to use. I used itunes before, but I was unaware of how much it could do. I think I will take this information and use it in my classroom. I think I will use itunes U in my classroom because it is a great tool for educators and students to learn about topics using technology. I think the most important thing I will take with me from this class is that by researching different things, I learned a lot about them. I think this is a great way for students to learn. By having students research a topic, they will probably learn a lot more, than by me just teaching it to them. Using technology in the classroom is a great way to teach students who have grown up with technology. 3.    As **//COMMUNICATOR//**, the educator is skilled in modes of communication that will enable effective communication and collaboration with other educators, parents, and families.
 * How has completing research in this class (reading the textbook, researching sites on the Internet, creating a presentation for class) helped you to become a better teacher candidate? **
 * Discuss one Internet site and one technology program that will help you to communicate to your students and their parents when you become a teacher? Describe how you could use each one to communicate to either students or parents when you are teaching.

A.One interent site that I will use to communicate to my students and their parents is my own website. I think creating a website is a great way to stay connected to students and parents. There is so much that you can do using a website. A teacher can post grades, have assignments uploaded, and have information to contact them. In this day of technology, a teacher should definately their own website to communicate to students and parents. After creating a website specifically for teaching, I think that a website is a great way to communicate effectively.

B. I think creating newsletters is another way to keep parents up to date and to communicate to students. A simple newsletter can tell both students and parents what is going on in the classroom, what topics a teacher is planning to teach, and other important information. Microsoft Publisher makes is easy to create newletters, as well as many other things to communicate to others with. Publisher is a great program, and is easy to use. Using Publisher to create a newsletter is fast and easy, and can convey a bunch of information on one or two pieces of paper. When I become a teacher, I think that I will use Publisher to make newsletters for my students to take home so that parents know what is going on in the classroom. **  4.     As **//EVALUATOR//**, the educator maximizes students’ learning by using a full range of formal and informal information-gathering processes in order to respond appropriately to student individual differences.
 * Discuss one web site and one technology program that you used and evaluated this semester? Why did you find each one useful and how might you use them in the classroom when you start teaching?

A. One website that I used during this semester was wikispaces. I think that I learned a lot about wikis during this class. First, I had never known that anyone can edit a wiki which I think is cool so that the information can be correct. I also learned how a wiki could be integrated in the classroom. Not only could a teacher use a wiki to share information, but it would give students a chance to give feedback. It would also allow students and teachers to create a project of their own that they all can contribute to. A wiki is a powerful tool that I could use as a teacher. I think I might use a wiki in my classroom to get the students motivated and involved in a class project. They could all do a little research and contribute to the project. A wiki is a great tool that I could use as a teacher.

B. I think on program that I definately will use is the Smartboard. These are in almost every classroom now, and they are a great tool. I never knew much about smartboards and I learned a lot about them during this class. There is so much that you could do with them. They could provide a great way to have student interaction with the lesson, and get the kids involved. A teacher could simply set up a program on Smartboard, and let it run for their students to use while the teacher works on something else with other students, There are so many ways a teacher could use a Smartboard in the classroom. Using a Smartboard is an awesome way to teach different topics, and I will definately use one as a teacher. If it is going to be in the classroom, I might as well use this great tool. **