Technology Training in Schools

There are about 50 teachers at the elementary school where I work.  Although the district has now mandated that we perform a number of work related issues, such as reporting an absence or completing leave forms on line, we still have a number of teachers or support staff members who struggle with performing basic tasks such as this.  Some people do not see or think about this as technology, but when I see staff struggling to complete these forms on-line, it really strikes me how low some of the staff's level of technology use really is.  At the end of the school year last year, every teacher, faculty and/or staff member had to take a technology assessment.  The purpose was primarily to see the level of our technology skills, but also to see what kinds of on-site training was needed. 

The majority of the technology training at my school is provided via a hands-on approach and focuses a great deal on instructional technology in the classroom.  Most of the training is done during after school training sessions at the school level.  However, occasionally, district mandated trainings also take place during planning days or sometimes after school, and our district also has ongoing Web-based training.  With these sessions, we must complete the on-line training and then take a survey.   

One particular approach that I find productive is when the sessions are geared towards working  with teachers in specific departments or grade levels on how to integrate multimedia presentations and electronic content into everyday teaching.  This is helpful because it is quite different to teach a 5^th grade class opposed to a kindergarten class.  It has also worked to have teachers create online homework sites and web pages to reinforce and expand classroom teaching and learning experiences as well as a way to keep parents informed.

One of the main problems that I see in having productive technology staff developments is not having consistency or ongoing training and coaching.  I would improve this by keeping the initial assessments in place as well as varying the training by having both on-line and hands-on training available.  However, I would have a dedicated date each month for technology training. For example, one Tuesday each month could be dedicated to technology professional development.  I would see what technology works with our curriculum, and further enhance how to use technology to support dual language learning since our school is continuing to build our IB program. 

The technology training has many strong points at my school.  In comparison to some of the other schools where I spoke to colleagues in the same district, my school is making the effort to train teachers and faculty and/or staff in technology whereas some schools are not focused on technology training at all or it is very minimal.  However, realizing that all teachers do not have the same needs will be the biggest challenge in working towards differentiating the technology training. 

Safari Montage - Media Management Solution

I am currently the Media Specialist at my school.  We use Safari Montage to manage our digital library. The district purchased a license to this site.   We have access to thousands of videos from PBS, Reading Rainbow, Khan Academy and Disney, just to name a few. Safari Montage also acts as a "cloud" by allowing students and teachers to store and show over 50 types of files. Teachers and students may either search the site for videos on specific topics or search Destiny Quest. A Safari Montage app may be downloaded to most mobile devices.

Safari Montage is very new to me. The school district I previously worked for did not have a subscription to this site. I am really impressed because it can include images and videos created by teachers and students as well. Recently, I uploaded our News Team's Halloween Broadcast. Students and teachers are able to log in to Safari Montage and view the video.  I prefer this option over YouTube because it is a safe environment for us to include videos that portray our students. You must have a user name and password to view any of these digital resources.

In the next couple of weeks my goal is to stream our live news show broadcasts through Safari Montage. I have someone coming to help me do this. Currently, news shows are streamed through televisions. Streaming through Safari Montage would eliminate the need for televisions in classrooms. The news shows may be viewed on Smart Boards.

I also planned a lesson for my 5th grade classes on creating and using QR codes.  For their assignment they must create a QR code for the resumes they create. My challenges are where can we post resumes safely on the web and how do we create a code that does not compromise the format of the resumes. I've decided to have students save their documents on safari montage. This will protect the students work from the general public and provide a URL for students to generate a QR code.

Unfortunately, this is an expensive option and not a realistic choice for an individual to consider using in the classroom. However, if you are looking for a digital resource library to use school/district wide, I recommend considering Safari Montage.

Social Networking

I remember the first time I logged onto to Facebook nearly a decade ago.  It was during the time when one had to be linked to a group in order to be accepted to Facebook.  I was linked into my undergraduate university’s group and my love affair with social media began!  Today, as school districts explore the use of social media throughout the school day and perhaps as a way to extend instruction; many teachers, media specialists, and administrators are deciding to create wikis, publish videos online, participate in blogging, and yes, to participate in social networking.  I see social networking as having transformed the way we communicate and share information with each other in an ever-changing technological society. 

 Most social networking sites are web-based and can be everything from blogs, to messaging or chats, to discussion groups, wikis, or podcasting.  I love the idea of social networking being utilized in school settings because this kind of technology allows students to connect with more people, in more ways.  Additionally, students today long for immediate connection. Thus, with the use of social networking, students often gain immediate feedback and comments on their posts via social netowrking from people all over the world.  Now, besides a teacher looking over a child’s geography work, students who live in that specific geographic area can comment and add to a student's page on a given social media site.  This becomes real to students and often prompts additional writing and hopefully more learning. 

 However, before taking the social networking plunge, teachers should investigate some good sites.  Because I work at an elementary school, teachers need  to check the minimum age that certain sites will accept.  My school uses social media daily.  We have parents to like our Facebook page and consequently, we have hundreds and hundreds of likes from parents, community partners, and alumni.  We like to post "happening now" events and post various pictures of children and their involvement throughout the day.  We have found that parents love the posts!  The administrators have rights to the page as well as three teachers and the Media Specialist.  Social networking has been a great way for my school to communicate with parents and for parents to stay up to date with various events at the school.  I promote reading nights through social media.  I also use social networking to let parents know the current books for our books of the month reading club, books for our reading bowl team, as well as summer reading lists.  Parents really appreciate having this information displayed on a social networking forum.  I believe that social media encourages educators to participate in social computing setting and strive to create an atmosphere of trust for parents. For whatever reason, people feel connected through this form of communication.  As a school, I think we have a great approach to social networking which  allows for involvement in the global conversation in which many parents, teachers, and community members are contributing.

 

Effective Media Center Websites

      Hi! My name is Amy and I am the media specialist with a mundane website. During my research this week, I viewed many media center sites, analyzing their features for usefulness and "curb appeal." I "inherited" a webpage, and it's layout has always bothered me as not being user friendly or appealing. I've included my webpage link for you to look at and provide thoughts. Input from peers are greatly appreciated!

     Jurkowski (2010) stated the most difficult part for a media specialist could be designing the look and feel of the media center website. It should meet the needs of the students and staff, especially those with disabilities.  He continues to explain that websites should be sketched out prior to creating them.  This means media specialists should do research by looking at other websites and identifying needs at their schools. About a month ago, I edited the website I "inherited." I added a secti on about my paraprofessional and myself. I also added a place for us to share the books we are currently reading. I actually got this idea from my para. She used to do this at her old school. If students see we are reading their books we have something in common and this opens up a conversation.
During my research, I found several websites useful.  I would love to implement an idea from each of the sites I am about to mention. My favorite elementary website was Barrow Elementary School's media website. This site appealed to me visually because it was "clean" and not cluttered with too much information. The media specialist also included a blog he updated regularly.  I searched several of his articles and felt the connection to be helpful to me.

   In middle school I enjoyed searching through Milton Middle School's media center page. The site is more inundated with information but I loved the design. I loved the section "Teacher Stuff." There seemed to be something for everyone at that school. Most of the middle school webpages I looked at included more information than the elementary pages. I think it is because of the age group and the material they use. The Book Blog was a great idea and I think it could be a useful resource in elementary school too. Though the blog's last entry was 2008, I liked that it was student created.

At the high school level, I was truly impressed with the Unquiet Library Blog. It was much more mature with the information presented and the manor it was presented. I loved the blog manners. The material in the blogs was very appropriate. I felt as if I was stepping into a high schooler's social networking scene. I would love to interview the media specialist and see data about the site's usefulness.

    So, getting back to my acknowledgement of my drab blog, I beieve the research for this post will help me recreate a user friend blog for teachers, students and parents. I really do not have control over the background format, but I can work with the layout. I would like to create separate sections for teachers, students, and parents. I also want to create links under subject names. I'd like students to be able to go to one place, whether at home or school and find what they need.

Wikis

How many times have you wondered about where or when a famous person was born or what team won the Super Bowl in the year 2000?  No matter what your question, I am sure at some point, you have come across one of the first, largest, and most famous wikis, Wikipedia.  This wiki was one of my first real introductions to what wikis were all about.  Of course, many people criticize the use of Wikipedia and other wikis as a solid research tool.  Still, Wikipedia is an excellent example of what can be done with a wiki. 

A wiki is software that allows users to create, edit, and link web pages easily.  Wikis allow anyone to create or edit a webpage or an entire website with little or no knowledge of html which stands for hypertext markup language.  However, wikis can be password protected in order to control who has access to edit.

As a Media Specialist, wikis can be used to promote ideas.  Additionally wikis allow for project collaboration and can contain text, audio, video, photos, links, and more.  In addition to promoting ideas and collaboration, I have used wikis in the past to teach copyright and licensing.  I know that other Media Specialists have utilized wikis to teach about wiki usage and provide reference materials. 

Wikis are free and easy to create on any topic from the creation of Media Center websites to publicizing book fairs, book clubs, reading nights or posting reading questions for reading quiz bowl teams.  The uses for wikis are obviously far beyond the Media Center.  Parent pages can be created using wikis which may include frequently asked questions (FAQ) sections for a variety of activies (both academically and socially) that are taking place throughout the school.  School leaders can use wikis as a means to provide professional development, collaborate on a school-based manual or handbook, or to collaboratively plan an event or conference, or to create a staff intranet.  Also, tags or keywords can be used that will help organize and sort information in wikis which is a great way to find information on the exact topic being searched.  

Book Talks Through Podcasts

Have you had your Book Fair yet? Did you play a DVD created by Scholastic with the book talks on it? As library media centers' budgets are cut each year, the funds from Book Fairs are even more important.  One way to gain greater student attention and generate more money is by giving students ownership of advertising the books at the fair. One way to accomplish this is by letting students create podcasts and create a QR code for the podcasts. These codes can be displayed next to books for students to scan and listen to the book talks.

Podcasts are not a new Web 2.0 tool. Essentially, podcasts are audio recordings on topics from story books read aloud, lecturers on the effects of World War II on the American economy, and students' reflections of class trips to the State Capital. These recordings are made on software, such as Audacity, Quicktime, and Internet software such as Camtasia.

Once students complete their audio recordings, they can upload the files to social networking sites. These sites include wikis, Glogster, and Edmodo.

Podcasts are a very creative way to introduce books to students.  A media specialist could use podcasts about book talks throughout the year by featuring a student's podcast on the media center website. This tool is definitely is not an exclusive classroom tool.

Welcome to the blog for Team 4, MEDT 7477, Fall 2013.
To get started, team members will need to discuss the layout you want to use.  Then you will check the course website for the schedule -- topics, as well as when each of you will do original posts and when you will be responsible for response posts to classmates.
OPC