Category: Weekly Reflections

This image is from our hands on time during class. I took some time looking into the brightness setting and moving my phone around, comparing the lighting at different angles and different spots of my room. I also found it neat that this app could create a record of how fast I was moving my phone each time.

This week we talked about Digital devices and compared whether they are “bicycles for the mind” or “distraction machines”. Personally, I believe that technology has created a great opportunity for students and teachers to use in a classroom setting. If used correctly, I think that devices can benefit any classroom in a variety of different age groups. These technologies can also be looked at through a negative lens and people may see devices as being disruptive, distractive and an opportunity that can impact students negatively. I do understand that they can become a distraction and that is why I emphasize the need for them to be used correctly and at the appropriate times.

Although these devices can create positives opportunities and engagements in the classroom, they could be seen as disruptive, distractive and a opportunity that impacts students negatively. Kids may think these devices can be used for the wrong reasons during class times like games or social media.

The link provided, science-journal  is a website version of the hands-on work we did in class. I think that this app would definitely work better with older students. I am interested in teacher students in grades 2-3 where I don’t see this resource to be a good fit. This resource would be too complex and I feel that it could potentially be a distraction to the concept of the lesson intended. Another drawback that we talked about was possible privacy or security issues. When students are new to using public websites/online media it is important that they keep their personal information aside to prevent any bigger issues.

During this week class we learned about the concept of incorporating games and coding into the classroom. We watched some videos and looked at some articles to help us better understand the benefits as well as the disadvantages of using games and coding in a classroom. We took some time to try out simple games ourselves and learned how specific instructions are/ need to be in order for the player to make progress or learn what is being portrayed.

I was unable to insert a screenshot of my coding due to problems with the website.

Throughout my school years, I can only ever remember my experience computer class as very simple and student lead. I remember in younger years we use a website to learn how to help us type with two hands. We learned where keys are and how to place your hands so that you wouldn’t have to move them as much. When we would look at coding games it would generally be ‘Cool Math Games for Kids’ and nothing really lesson based that taught us a specific concept. As I got older, in middle school, we would have computer class, but it wasn’t engaging and I didn’t do things like coding or educational games it was more of lessons on how to use computer software’s like Word, Excel, etc. 

During hands on activity time in class, I was reflecting on how the games I was playing could be useful in the classroom. I found that some of them required less thinking and it was more of a free time. To play around with the activity. On the other hand I also found some games that required more thinking and problem solving. Computation thinking is the concept of using decomposition, pattern recognition, abstraction, and algorithm while problem solving. Computation thinking can help learners become better problem solvers through repetition and time spent working through problems/ obstacles throughout a game.

Gameplay in the classroom can be used as a tool to make traditionally less popular topics more engaging for some learners! Some concepts or topics taught in the classroom can be very hard for students to engage with. This goes for all subjects depending on the learner as well as how it is being taught. Gameplay gives another opportunity for students to engage with a lesson in a less formal and instructional way and it gives them time to try and find some ‘fun’ within the topic they are needing to learn. Although this is the case for some students, it is not beneficial for all types of learners!

Sketch-noting and Infographics!

This week we learned the benefits and disadvantages of sketch-noting and infographics. Sketchnotes are a way to take quick and understandable notes while listening to something like a lecture. This way of note taking is ‘dual coding’ which means you are taking in information through writing and making small sketch drawings along side your notes.

Below, I have included a photo of the sketches that I made during this weeks class. We used this website, Skill Building Workshop to learn quick ways to scetch drawings.

In class, I chose to make a sketch note for ESL students to learn English. I made sketch notes of different symbols of Canada like a Canadian goose. I also included a drawing of a notepad including the names of 3 places in Canada. Below is a photo of the sketchnoting that I did in this weeks class.

The SAMR theory of technology adoption can help teachers evaluate technologies that could be considered to use in a classroom. The SAMR stands for Substitution, Augmentation, Modification, and Redefinition. Without diving into each aspect of the SAMR Theory, each word stands for a different way that technology can change or enhance the learning of students with given tasks. The top two on the scale can enhance the learners learning without changing the way the information is given or received. whereas the bottom two give technology the ability to change tasks with redesign or make them completely new. Teachers can use this theory to help evaluate technologies they want to use by seeing where it aligns with the picture below.

Sketchnoting can be beneficial but it can also have its drawbacks. In the future I’m hoping to teach a lower elementary grade like grade 2-3. Learners in these grades are less likely to benefit from something like sketchnoting because it won’t be used in the classroom setting. The idea of sketch noting and Infograph’s would be more beneficial in classrooms with older students where they will be taking their own notes.

3D Printing and Design

This week we learned about 3D printing and Design. We all got to create our own 3D design in class using Tinkercad, https://www.tinkercad.com/dashboard. Tinkered is a free and easy website to use to make your creations that will be able to be printed with a 3D printer. During this weeks class, I made a keychain with the letters “A, X, O” which stands for letters of the Greek alphabet.

3D printing can be used in cross-curricular activities. For example, while our class was in the digital scholarship commons, we got to see 3D printed dice with indigenous letters on them. The idea of dice could also be used in severall types of games in the classroom. This could include number games, letter games etc. that need a dye or dice! It would be neat for students to create their own pieces to a potential learning game within the classroom.

The idea of 3D printing and design being a part of the education system holds its own positives and negatives. I think that a strong negative is funding along with safety. As time goes by hopefully the printers can become more accessible. The safety aspect really varies depending on the age range of students that you are trying to work with. Although there are some negatives, the positives do outweigh them. Having 3D printing available in classrooms produces more opportunities for the teachers and students. It also helps build students creativity. While working with younger students this can be used to build things like shapes, and other physical objects that they can use for more hands-on learning. While working with older students you could create an opportunity for them to physically produce their own ideas to be printed like we did during class this week.