Digital Learning Environment & Inventory

What tools, software, operating systems, and equipment are available in your school and classroom? (including but not limited to: videoconferencing, streaming, photos sharing sites, video sharing sites, document sharing sites, podcasts, blogs, wikis, social networking sites, etc.) 

We have access to Google Apps, Wiki-spaces (mine is mradamsisawesome.wikispaces.com and it’s still under construction). We also have access to YouTube and have everything from flip cameras to document cameras and laptops available for the students. We are a tech rich district and campus (Dell Computers is in our city). Our issue is finding the time to figure out the programs we would like to use. We’ve needed a rudder and a motor to get to where we need to get, technologically speaking of course.

How does your school make use of school and/or teacher websites?

The school provides teacher websites for us to use. They are mostly employed for announcements and documents for the students to print up themselves. I use mine also to provide various formats for my students to cover the same information in different fashions (digital forms of historical documents). My goal is to establish an online assessment for my students.

How are you currently utilizing technology for learning? 

I use my website to disperse materials to my students and communicate with them. I also use technology for my student centered lessons where they go find their own examples of what we are discussing in class and provide documentation for their claims. It’s been huge for student morale and success on common assessments. The emphasis in my class will be shifting to taking action on the knowledge gained fromt heir research.

Which websites are blocked by your school's firewall? 

Social networking sites (Facebook, Myspace, Twitter), Pornographic sites, Instagram, Gaming sites, Gambling Sites and Pintrest are all blocked. Also, news sites/articles can also get caught in the firewall if there are certain words in the title of the document.

Youtube, Moodle, and many blog sites (Blogger, Weebly, etc.) are not blocked. 

What websites and tools are colleagues in your building using?

 Moodle, Edmodo, Digital Goonies, Google Apps for Education, Google Sites

Is there a system for evaluating student technology literacy in your school? If so, how effective or helpful have you found the assessment? 

There is in middle school. The only thing available for high school is an end of year survey that not everyone fills out. It has not been that helpful in increasing student technology usage or fluency.

Gather suggestions from students on their ideas for integrating technology into their learning. 

My students recommended use of webquests (whatever those are), more YouTube, creating our own Youtube channel, teaching each other how to search the net for information, teaching each other how to take notes, and access to programs that will allow them to create original work. They have also suggested doing video submissions for presentations.

What tools that are not presently available would help to achieve district objectives? 

Anything Apple related and regular access to technology.

Using your Digital Learning Environment Inventory, develop a solution or suggest an improvement customized to your school/classroom circumstances. Create, implement, and evaluate one change in a globalized lesson plan to use technology for learning in a meaningful way. 

I found the best solution for my classes was the creation of an interactive technology island with a list of Web 2.0 websites/programs next to the display. Under this list is a directive to write a quarter page summary of how the program could be used in class. Students will have time before class and when they finish their work to come and “play” with the various programs that are accessible. The students were directed to find a way to use at least one of the tools in their research/presentation portion of their projects. This will help give me a clearer direction in how to apply the technology that I have access to. I’ve learned that no matter how tech savvy I am or am not, a 14 year old student is one of my best troubleshooters. I shall never cease to be amazed at how smooth they are with technology usage, even with programs they’ve never been exposed too. They seem to thrive at the challenge of finding the new/unique program that really makes their work "pop"!!!