Design Project: Introduction

        The Periodic Table is arranged according to Periodic Law. The Periodic Law states that when elements are arranged in order of increasing atomic number, their physical and chemical properties show a periodic pattern. Students can discover these patterns by examining the changes in properties of elements on the Periodic Table. The properties that will be examined in this lesson are: atomic radius, first ionization energy, and electronegativity.
        The ‘Domain of Knowledge’ for this learning experience is the Periodic Table of Elements in general. The main concept for this unit will be discovering that this table does exist, why it is necessary, and how it can be useful. Specifically, this lesson will look at the trends of the Periodic Table of Elements.
       This lesson is important for everyone to learn because it teaches the student more about the world around them. It is crucial to learn science because one day this knowledge may be useful. For example, you’re a marketing major looking for a job and there’s an opening at a paint company you will be able to sell that paint much easier if you are able to discuss intelligently with the research chemist about the product you are trying to sell. Also it is important to learn about many different topics so that you are a well-rounded person.
     

  Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleev (1834-1907) was also known as the ‘father of the Periodic Table, started out by creating a card for each of the 63 known elements. Each card contained the element's symbol, atomic weight and its characteristic chemical and physical properties. When Mendeleev arranged the cards on a table in order of ascending atomic weight grouping elements of similar properties together the periodic table was formed. From this table, Mendeleev developed his statement of the periodic law and published his work On the Relationship of the Properties of the Elements to their Atomic Weights in 1869. From this periodic table, many trends in the chemical and physical properties of the elements are able to be seen based on column, row, and sometimes even diagonal trends.
        There are many projects that are able to be made from the periodic table, for example: Periodic Table bingo, presentation on your favorite element which could include making that element into a ‘superhero’ and creating a comic strip based on that character. Discussion is a key tool for this learning experience since these trends will be completely new concepts so after watching videos or reading about the trends in their text book, whole class discussions would initially benefit everyone the most. 

Design Project: Introduction

Design Project: TPACK

Design Project: Relation to Project Tomorrow

Design Project: Organization

Design Project: Conditions for Classroom

Design Project: Resources/Webliography

Design Project: TPACK

• How and why do the particular technologies used in this TELE “fit” the content selected?

The two technologies selected for the learning experience fit the content well since videos are great for action and moving parts.  The visual comparisons that are able to be made with the simulations aid in the students understanding of the periodic trends.  Since the three concepts being covered are in fact trends that means that things are changing and change is much easier to understand if it is seen rather than heard.

Fact-based interactive scenarios, where students are able to explore a problem, can assists with student problem-solving, decision making and interpretation of data or observations in a real-world context.

• How and why do the particular technologies used in this TELE “fit” the instructional strategies you selected?

These videos and simulations help aid the instructional strategies I’ve made because I know there are some students who find it difficult to learn from just listening to my lectures or reading their text. It is more straightforward for the students to understand electronegativity when you can actually see the two atoms interacting rather than just hearing me explain it to them.  The limitations of the videos is that I need to find the right video so that it truly relates to the specific topic at hand this is sometimes easier said than done.  Another limitation of the videos is the lack of interaction it allows the students to have, but this shortcoming is covered by having simulations and interactive websites.                                                           

• How and why do the content, instructional strategies, and technologies used all fit together in this TELE?

These three concepts: content, technology and pedagogy come together by making sure that the technology fits well with both the content I am trying to teach and at the same time it fits with the way I want to explain that information to my students.  The main point of this lesson is to enhance the students’ conceptual knowledge specifically. The students will do a handful of tasks throughout this learning experience.  They will watch videos, participate in online simulations, and also discuss their findings, all of which involve some aspect of technology.

Design Project: Introduction

Design Project: TPACK

Design Project: Relation to Project Tomorrow

Design Project: Organization

Design Project: Conditions for Classroom

Design Project: Resources/Webliography

Design Project: Relation to Project Tomorrow

         Modern students are very interested in using their own technology in class. Through my research with Project Tomorrow about cell phones I found there are many applications for cell phone use in a school environment.  Many teenagers today have their own cell phones, and most of those even have internet access which they use all the time outside of school.  If the students did have an I-Phone or an I-Pad they would be able to go to the interactive websites or videos at their own desk so depending on the number of students with this type of phone we would be able to potentially break into small groups and work on different but related concepts.  This increase in cell phone use can boost communication since it gives me, their teacher, another way of contacting them.  I can text them links to videos that they need to watch as their homework.  This use of new technologies helps with teaching because if the students aren’t able to understand a certain concept after I’ve explained it then by either visually seeing it played out in a video or working hands on in a simulation/interactive website the student are now given two new ways to potentially understand the information.  As we all know not everyone learns the same way so being able to incorporate new ways of presenting information is always helpful for the students.

Design Project: Introduction

Design Project: TPACK

Design Project: Relation to Project Tomorrow

Design Project: Organization

Design Project: Conditions for Classroom

Design Project: Resources/Webliography

Design Project: Conditions for Classroom Technology innovation

I can most relate to Anne and her story of trying to integrate technology through presentations in her math classes because she did not encounter any resistance from fellow teachers. In fact, some of her colleagues wanted to do her lesson plan as well.  This is very applicable to my learning experience since many science teachers today are already including interactive activities, simulations, and videos to support their lesson plans.  The distance from school culture in this case is very small which is similar to the distance from existing practice since the use of these technologies to demonstrate scientific concepts is regular.  The biggest obstacle I feel I will run into with this learning experience will be if the internet is down or if the sites I want to show the students are blocked by internet filters.  Another issue for the students for using videos is that while they make certain concepts easier to visualize they aren’t interactive so some students may not pay attention.  However, the interactive sites are great for students who are more visual and hands on learners.  It allows those students who are unable to imagine how atomic radii change over a range of elements to actually see the differences played out in a simulation. 

I feel that technology should be used in the class room if for no other reason than to make learning more fun/interesting for students.  I feel very confident in my ability (as the innovator) to use technology successfully in the classroom.  I think with chemistry it would be most useful to incorporate videos (animated) which are able to show moving parts of an atom which are unable to be seen with the naked eye. 

I think it would be a great idea to take the students on a field trip to tour a local business’s lab so they would be able to see how chemistry knowledge is applied in an everyday work setting.

Design Project: Introduction

Design Project: TPACK

Design Project: Relation to Project Tomorrow

Design Project: Organization

Design Project: Conditions for Classroom

Design Project: Resources/Webliography

Design Project: Resources/ Webliography

The Periodic Table of Videos. http://www.periodicvideos.com/. 6/12/2012.  This website is both interactive and has a video on every element.  In which it describes how that specific element relates to those surrounding it creating the trends we see.

Dartmouth College Periodic Puzzle. Dartmouth College Periodic Puzzle. 6/12/2012.  This interactive table displays trends through colors. It is also a puzzle so that you have to put the periodic table back together.

You Tube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGM-wSKFBpo 6/12/2012. This video is a fun way to introduce the periodic table in general before staring to talk about the specifics.  Plus it's a little funny.

You Tube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywqg9PorTAw 6/12/2012.  This is a wonderful informational video specifically on ionization energy.  It explains the concept in a way that is easy to follow.

A Brief History of the Developement of the Periodic Table. http://www.wou.edu/las/physci/ch412/perhist.htm. 6/12/2012.  This was the resource used for the history of the periodic table.

Harris, J and Hofer, M. (2009) Instructional Planning Activity Types as Vehicles for  Curriculum-Based TPACK Development.  This paper was used to analyze the learning experience based on the technology, content, and pedagogical implications.

You Tube. http://ww.youtube.com/watch?v=XMLd-O6PgVs. 6/12/2012.  This video explains the rest of the periodic trends: electronegativity and atomic radius. 

Zhao, Yong.; Pugh, Kevin.; Sheldon, Stephen. “Conditions for classroom technology innovations.” Teachers College Record, v. 104 issue 3, 2002, p. 482-515.

Periodic Table Trends. http://www.lynchburg.net/hhs/chemistry/trends/. 6/12/2012.  This is a great website for displaying IE, Electronegativity, and AR trends through graphs.

Design Project: Introduction

Design Project: TPACK

Design Project: Relation to Project Tomorrow

Design Project: Organization

Design Project: Conditions for Classroom

Design Project: Resources/Webliography

Design Project: Organization

The classroom is a typical one, twenty or so students sitting at their individual desks facing the front of the class.  At the front the teacher is describing their goals for the week.  This week’s lesson is periodic trends. The goal of today is a short lecture to introduce the topic followed by a few videos, and finally end with a discussion on the concepts covered in the videos. The students all pull out their notebooks and pens in order to take notes during the lecture and videos; they were instructed to write down any questions or comments they have during the video presentation.  After the brief intro describing the ideas being discussed in the videos, the teacher begins the show.  As soon as the lights go off some of the students are looking attentively at the screen while others look as though they are preparing to take a nap.  The teacher circulates around the room and tells these students to pay attention or their notes from the films will be collected for points.  The links for the videos shown in class can be seen here:

http://ww.youtube.com/watch?v=XMLd-O6PgVs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywqg9PorTAw

After the video a discussion followed where some students who were still having trouble visualizing the concept of ionization energy asked questions.  Some of the other students were able to answer their questions.  The teacher ended the day by assigning homework.

The second day of the TELE there is much more freedom for the students.  The class is given a handout with questions on the periodic trends which they need to answer by visiting specific websites the teacher has given them.  The IT department brought over a labtop cart so that each student would have their own computer to work at.  The students move their desks so that they work in small groups.  As they work, the teacher circulates around the room to make sure the students are visiting the allowed sites as well as to answer any questions that arise. The website links can be seen here:

Dartmouth College Periodic Puzzle.

http://www.periodicvideos.com/.

http://www.lynchburg.net/hhs/chemistry/trends/

One of the websites that the teacher gave to the students to visit isn’t working.  It is being blocked by the school’s internet filter so the teacher called IT and asked for someone to add the website to the allowed school sites.  After a few minutes the students were permitted to peruse the simulation.

On the third day of the lesson, the topics are reviewed by the teacher and she posed questions to the students to measure their level of understanding.  The teacher also asked them which form of technology they felt best help them understand the content, her initial power point introduction lecture, the videos, or the websites/simulations.

This lesson is specific to chemistry so it is single disciple; however, this teacher expressed her openness to having interdisciplinary lessons.

Design Project: Introduction

Design Project: TPACK

Design Project: Relation to Project Tomorrow

Design Project: Organization

Design Project: Conditions for Classroom

Design Project: Resources/Webliography

Project Tomorrow

Cell Phones in School

While I think that cell phones do pose a very serious potential for distraction, I also feel as though a lot of teachers, especially those in schools without newer technology, aren't harnessing the amazing potential cell phones could have in the classroom.  There is this one ESL (English as a second language) teacher out there that uses his students cell phones as a way of improving their language/literacy/communication skills.  A news story about this classroom is in a link below.  There are many ways a cell phone can be used in the class room, some of which Miss C outlines.  I think one of the best ways to use a cell phone that I've heard of is to have kids answer survey questions by texting in their answers.  Students are so bored in class they need a lesson that is new/fun/entertaining as well as interactive.  I believe that cell phones can be very beneficial technology for students to have both inside and outside the classroom. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXt_de2-HBE

Rough Outline for Project Tomorrow

Initial Proposal:

This outline is to inform you what story I’ve chosen, what types of digital media I’ve looked into in order to tell this story, and also what sources I have found so far.

·         This girl’s journey through middle school and high school

·         She starts out stating her need of a cell phone as a 13 year old kid

·         Theme: discovering the benefits and consequences technology use can bring both for her education and in her personal life

o    She fights so hard for her cell phone but then realizes that there can be negative aspects

·         As far as story line goes I’d start out with a brief introduction

·         Introduction: short summary of “Miss C’s” story how it’s on a blog and why mobile technology is an important topic to discuss

·         Use: there are so many reasons that she describes for needing a phone

o    Safety, communication, social life (which for a 13 year old girl is life in general)

·         Needs: social pressure of everyone else having a phone

·         Wants: being able to text

o    The data she reveals about how girls on AVERAGE text over 4000 times a year (more than 100/day)

·         Benefits-Personal: she says that with her phone she’ll never be bored again, it brought her family together by making them discuss when and how technology use should be allowed with their family

·         Benefits-Educational: describes how her friend gets to use her phone in class

·         There were also negative parts of having a phone which she outlines as overuse, distraction, cheating, inappropriate use

·         As far as multimodal literacy goes this girl is blogging, talking about getting a cell phone, Facebook, online polling options ect.

·         Towards the end of this girl’s story she states that she is unable to multitask when it comes to texting in class and listening to the lecture this is different from Jenkin’s definition of multitasking, but I feel as though this girl (being a part of as she called it generation millennium) would easily be able to scan her environment and discern the relevant information.

·         This girl definitely knows how to play with her technology I mean she started a blog just to prove to her parents that she needs a cell phone that was definitely a unique approach to problem solving.

·         Transmedia navigation: she used many different resources that came from different media modes

·         It took a while to figure out which type of digital story telling method I wanted to use to tell this young girl’s story.  I started out by thinking I wanted to do a montage of images with a voice overlay, but then I was unsure whether I wanted to record myself for this project.

·         I mainly used the cogdogroo site since there were so many digital stories already made and it was very interesting to see the same story told in so many ways

·         I liked his cartoon depictions of the story I thought those might be a good way to represent  Miss C’s story as well since it can be ‘chopped up’ into slides like that

·         I liked that with photopeach you’re able to do a slide show with background music which helps to set the mood as you tell the story in text and images

·         I really like prezi I feel like it is a modern powerpoint, but I wonder if it will be good for the type of story I’m trying to tell

·         I think my favorites were slide share and prezi.

The site of Miss C's blogg:

http://technology-use-and-abuse.wikispaces.com/3a.+A+Personal+Story

Sources:

1. Jenkins, Henry. "Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media Education for the 21st Century." Dr. Shutkin, 20 May 2011. Web. 31 May 2012

This source will help by comparing Jenkins' ideas of participatory culture to my own. At the same time I will display how Jenkins' definitions of the aspects of participatory culture can be seen with Miss C's actions.

2. News Release. "WLTZ 38 | Columbus Georgia Regional News & CommunitySpencer Student Earns Technology Recognition." Spencer Student Earns Technology Recognition. Muscogee County School District), 23 Jan. 2012. Web. 31 May 2012. <http://www.wltz.com/story/16580870/spencer-student-earns-technology-recognition>.

This site is a great advocate for technology's role in school. It will help to support Miss C's ideas behind the educational benefits of having her cell phone.

3.  Creating Our Future:  Students Speak Up about their Vision for 21st Century Learning.  Speak Up 2009.  National Findings.  K-12 Students & Parents.  March 2010.  (Retrieved: 3 June 2010).

      Web 31 May 2012.

This report has a lot of useful information on what students want out of school especially concerning technology.  It also says how teachers and parents feel about technology use in the classroom which will be a good resource when trying to depict what Miss C’s parents reasons were for not allowing her a cell phone.

  

Weblog 4 Integrating Technology into the Classroom

I think the four most important ways to incorporate Web 2.0 apps into the classroom/websites would be through communication, planning ahead, making learning fun, and of course grades.  These can all be accomplished by using four specific Web 2.0 applications: Tangler, Google Calendar, Quizlet, Scribblar, and Engrade. Tangler is a discussion board/forum app which I will use for allowing parents to pose questions or comments to myself as well as all the other parents in the course. This open communication is essential both for my teaching and for the students to learn so that their parents will be able to help them succeed. Google Calendar will make it extremely easy for me to change the course calendar without having to change my website  since it is a part of my gmail account; the calendar will also allow students/parents/principal to see where the class is going and plan accordingly.  Since the calendar will be embeded it will be easy for the students as well to just go to the website and check to see if anything has changed.  Quizlet and Scribblar are fun ways to actively learn with the student or have the student enter the sites on their own to study.  Quizlet is an app that allows the user to make flashcards which for chemistry is great since there are a lot of new terms to understand. Scribblar is an online whiteboard which would allow students not in the classroom to see exactly how I would work out problems if they're having trouble.  I've decided to embed the codes to both quizlet and scribblar so that the students wouldn't need a user name and password for these sites. Finally, I will use Engrade for my online gradebook.  This is a wonderful app that when the student has a user name and password, they are allowed to view their scores on past assignments as well as see what other assignments are left for the year.


Tangler: http://tangler.com
Google Calendar: http://gmail.com
Scribblar: www.scribblar.com
Quizlet: http://quizlet.com/
Engrade: www.engrade.com

Weblog 3

   Out of all the chemistry classes I’ve taken, I have always done better in courses where the teacher had an updated and useful website.  Especially those with helpful links to sites with extra practice problems if for no other reason than I didn’t understand the way that the book or even my teacher was presenting the problem.  That is why as a pre-service teacher I already know that my website will have a lot of resources.  The website should have a ‘homepage’ with my contact information, general information about the course as well as any announcements.  Then there should be tabs for resources available to the students of various helpful websites. There should also be a tab for a calendar; a tab for notes whether that is handouts or power points would also be needed.  Another option for tabs could be for the more serious chemistry students about lab technician opportunities for high school students as well as various chemistry programs at universities.

     As far as parents of my students are concerned, I believe that their ability to get in touch with me is very important.  There should be on my website a tab just for parents that can have all my contact info repeated as well as FAQ concerning grades, extra credit opportunities, tutoring options/contacts, and ways to help their child succeed in chemistry (a subject which most parents are unable to help).

     I think the most useful Web 2.0 applications for a high school chemistry class website would be a calendar, a digital drop box for homework, a white board so that I could work through problems online with the students, and a flashcard site for all the new terms/concepts introduced throughout the year.  I would also have a forum/discussion based application so that communication about upcoming tests and projects with parents and students would be very easy. The parents would also be able to use this medium to check in with me if they had any concerns about their child’s progress in the course.

Handbook of Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge for Educators: Thoughts/Questions

     I never thought of teaching as an 'ill structured' position before reading this chapter, but compared to physics or mathematics which both have a set way to answer a problem teaching is very difficult to narrow down a 'correct way of doing things'. The main concept I grasped from the first section of the chapter was that due to this lack of structure it is very difficult to say what is the best way to integrate technology. Every teacher is different with a specific style all their own so they can each be unique in their approach to technology integration. Often, teachers even hold themselves back from fully utilizing a technology due to their own 'bias and predilections' on technology. Change is often very difficult for people.

     One important thing I learned about technology was that with all of its benefits there can be certain drawbacks; one great example of this is with email which can be a very effective form of communication, but sometimes email is unable to show the tone, mood or intent of what is being sent which can lead to problems.  These difficulties include: the instability of technology, the opaqueness, and the fact that it is very protean. The fact that technology is opaque means that it can be difficult to understand how it works which makes people fearful of using it.  With all of these difficulties there is only one solution: that each attempt at integration should be custom designed for that particular subject matter and teaching style. This will be especially true for myself being a science teacher who has to deal with labs as well as discussion based learning.

WebLog 1: Introductory Video Survey

Noah Cover of "Sexy and I Know It" by LMFAO