Module 1 Blog: Basic Software Tools

Chapter 4 talks about introducing basic software in the classrooms. Roblyer (2016) states in the text that these tools can be beneficial in the classroom to improve productivity, appearance, accuracy and more support for interaction and collaboration (Roblyer, 2016, p.109). These are pros and cons of the 3 basic software programs.

Word Processing Software: 

Word processing software programs allow the user to type their documents on the computer. Examples of these programs are Microsoft Word, Pages (Mac Software), and Google Docs. Most word processing programs allow some desktop publishing elements such as text boxes and inserting graphics. Roblyer (2016), suggests that teachers use word processing software to save time (typing is faster vs writing) and to enhance document appearance (not all students have the best handwriting) (Roblyer, 2016, p.115).

Some issues a teacher may have with word processing software is the need to teach keyboarding skills and what age students should start word processing. Typing can be introduced as early as 4 or 5 years old but some teachers feel that is the prime time to be focusing on building their handwriting skills and developing those fine motor skills before introducing typing. I think the text does provide a valid point, handwriting should be introduced first and build those skills and then introduce typing and word processing software.

Spreadsheet Software

Spreadsheet software is used to organize and manipulate numerical data. These are programs like Excel, Numbers, and Google Sheets. Roblyer (2016) states that teachers use spreadsheets to save time, support what if questions, and increase motivation to work with mathematics. These activities could be sorting data, basic math calculations and graphing (Roblyer, 2016, p. 122).

A big issue with spreadsheets can be that often students who are "scared" of math are often scared of spreadsheets. I can totally understand this. Opening up a spreadsheet can sometimes be scary for me especially when you have to do calculations on it. I think a good way to introduce spreadsheets would be a very visual step by step process of how to work with the program.

Presentation Software
Presentation software is used to display information in a slideshow format. These programs include, Powerpoint, Pages, and Google Slides. In our text, Roblyer (2016) states that teachers use presentation software to help organize thinking about a topic, enhance the impact of spoken information, and to allow for collaboration on a presentation (Roblyer, 2016, p. 127). From book reports to review games the possibilities for presentation software are almost limitless.

An issue with presentation software is that no research shows that the software impacts the information presented. Nothing proves that presenting something in a presentation software makes educational gains. I think there are great ways to integrate slideshow software in the classroom that can help students learn.

How to Use Slideshow Software in the Classroom

(Choose Your Own Adventure, 2011)

Instead of using slideshow software to present, I think you should use it for students to create and share. I observed in a 3rd grade classroom this past May term and they used Google Slides to create "Choose Your Own Adventure" games. They made up a scenario and used hyperlinks that linked to different slides based on the class choice. It was amazing to see the students using Google Slides and hyperlinks to create these fun games. While the students I observed with did these for  a fun end of the year activity, I found a link to one created about the rainforest that could be used in science.

References 

Lesson Ideas - Microsoft PowerPoint  

      https://sites.google.com/a/cfsd16.org/microsoft-powerpoint/lesson-ideas

Roblyer, M. D. (2016). Integrating educational technology into teaching. 
    Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon.

Getting Back in the Saddle

A little bit of background..

(Modeling on set of a photoshoot, no day was ever the same at SPC)

As many of y'all might know, I am a graduate student in this program. My undergraduate degree is in journalism. I graduated from Samford in 2012 and worked right next door at Southern Progress, the publisher of Southern Living, Cooking Light and many other titles doing a 1 year post-graduate fellowship. It was amazing and I have a huge collection of cookbooks because of it now.  Blogging is something that I was taught to do in undergrad and I used to blog pretty regularly and had a handful of followers but I fell out of it when I started working at SPC but am very excited to pick it back up with this class. 

Why did I decide to go back to school? 

After my time at SPC ended, I had trouble finding a job in the journalism field. As a result, I started subbing at the preschool my mom works at. As it turns out, I really liked teaching. For a brief minute at Samford I was an elementary ed major but talked myself out of it and went the journalism route. Even as I was subbing, I still wasn't totally convinced that going back to school was the right decision for me. So I decided to teach 3K and see if this was really my calling. It was the toughest but MOST rewarding year it confirmed to me 100% this is what I want to be doing with my life. I met with Dr. Williams and the rest is history.

(My sweet 3K class, I would love to teach at least one of these kids again)

Why do I want to be a teacher?
The year I spent teaching 3K was so rewarding, seeing students who you didn't think were paying any attention go home and tell their parents all about hibernation or recite the whole pledge of allegiance when they had been rolling all over the floor when we practiced is the best feeling in the world to me. It's hard and a lot of days you want to pull your hair out but when those sweet little faces leave your class at the end of the year, you are wanting them to come back. My 3K group went to kindergarten this year and I am always getting updates from their parents through Facebook and text messages. Seeing them grow and being one of the reasons they do grow is why I want to be a teacher.

Purpose of this blog..
I hope with this blog, I can learn new methods of technology and how to incorporate them into the classroom. As much as many people don't like to admit it, technology is the future and there are so many innovative ways to incorporate it into the classroom that better prepare students for the future.

Word Cloud..
I think my word cloud captures my educational beliefs.. I want to be a hands-on interactive teacher. I want the room to always be buzzing with learning. Reading is my favorite subject so while I do want technology to be in my classroom, I still want to have books all over the place. I want to provide a positive learning experience for my students.

I am looking forward to blogging more throughout the semester and reading all my fellow classmate's blogs!