• What does digital citizenship mean to you in your personal life, professional life?
• Have you ever had your feelings hurt by something shared online? Have you ever hurt anyone else’s feelings? What would you do differently?
• How might adult concerns and fears about the lurking dangers found online prevent digital citizens from capitalizing on the creative and civic potentials of a participatory culture?

Resources

( https://youtu.be/oCkTmZ0bF5Q and video of Garth Holman and
 his resources: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1BzqJHjI-yxHVaJ_jPioc2rlrYwolAlJj3NdYRIRmvEs/edit )

   " Digital citizenship can be defined as the norms of appropriate, responsible behavior with regard to technology use.   "

Being a digital citizen means participating in the right manner online or in the virtual world. As a digital citizen I must give my thoughts, opinions, my help, as well as encouragement to others. To be a good citizen online, I must use caution before I post and only motivate or share my ideas to others who may be online as well. I want to leave a positive digital footprint and good digital legacy behind, so even when I may not be around anymore, others can still get online and see my thoughts, ideas, or even receive some educational or even personal motivation. 

After reading this website, http://www.digitalcitizenship.net/Nine_Elements.html I learned just exactly what being a digital citizen was and the nine themes that summarizes it.

I have seen first hand how people's feelings can get hurt, including myself, online, especially in middle and high school. I, personally, try to stay away from saying negative things, or getting into fights online because it never solves anything and has never made me feel better about myself. I saw it mostly in high school after big football or basketball games. I have also seen a lot lately of boys bashing girls and girls bashing girls at my previous high school. Now, I just unfollow or unfired anyone that I see is being negative towards others and that is what I should have done long ago. It is so important to be careful and cautious when posting on social media, especially now because so many people have access to it, like school administration and even future employers.  Check this out to see some statistics about cyberbullying -- Cyberbullying statistics

 

Adults should be concerned due to these awful and scary statistics. Because of this, they may want participation to be very limited and small. What they do need to understand is how rewarding and beneficial a digital citizenship can be. I believe they should always be super cautious and put trust in teachers to teach them about online etiquette and cyberbullying because like Holman said, "once its online, it stays there forever."

Cool Tool Number 2

For this week's cool tool, I picked Bubbl.us. This would be great to use in a younger classroom to help students connect certain words or pictures to a main idea or category. ( here is the link https://bubbl.us/mindmap ). I know that Ohio Standard for Kindergarten, students must read one-syllable and often-heard words by sight. In first grade, they must demonstrate a growing stock of sight words and by grade two they must read regularly spelled multi-syllable words by sight. (http://www.ohiorc.org/standards/ohio/item/englishlanguagearts/gli/34.aspx) This tool makes it easier for students to visually see a main category and its components. I can print one off for reach student to use daily and they can go back to it as a guide if they are ever stuck. It's important that students know their sight words from the beginning and will help them later on. Students could also use this tool, maybe with the help of another student or an adult. They could also use it alone after it was demonstrated to them step by step. It's easy to use because there's only a few buttons to choose from. They could even draw one out instead of using a computer and using this website. As a teacher I could use colors of the rainbow, types of chores, or even types of animals. There are endless possibilities when it comes to Bubble.us.

Cool Tool Review

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/story-creator-easy-story-book/id545369477?mt=8

For my cool tool review, I found an app called Story Creator - Easy Story Book Maker for Kids. First, this had pretty good ratings as well as many features. You can scribble a page, upload a picture, add a video, and even add your own voice.
I made a little story of random pictures from this summer and I found it quite easy to use. I could have my students use their parents phones or tablet and make a little book of either drawings or take pictures or recordings of what they did this weekend. The only downside is that it is only accessible on a tablet or phone. It may be a little difficult for them to use alone, so they would have to get help from someone older, which is fine because it is something they could easily do with a parent or guardian. It just makes class a little more fun and exciting. I can show a number of students' book once every week at the beginning of class and it also helps with creativity. It wouldn't take up a lot of time and it would give a chance for a student to present their book to the class and tell about their weekend or about something new they learned. Students, especially young ones, are always wanting to talk about their weekend or what they did the night before so this gives them time to get it out of the way and be able to implement creativity and new information. As a teacher, I could also use this during the day for a project or lesson. Students can take pictures or talk about what they learned that day and make it into a digital book and take it home with them on a tablet or email it to their parents. Since they have access to it at home they can review and easily go back over it at home.

 

TPACK & Tools

• When introducing new tools into the classroom, what questions should you consider before implementation (technical, administrative, pedagogical, other)?
• What are some of the positive attributes as well as potential barriers regarding the introduction of tools in the classroom?
• How will you choose technologies that enhance the teaching approaches for a lesson when you are in your own classroom?
• After learning about TPACK, what questions do you have and how do you think you can begin to answer them?

 

After watching Dr. Holliday's video and reading articles about TPACK ( https://insidetheclassroomoutsidethebox.wordpress.com/2016/02/14/creating-with-new-web-tools/ )   I have learned just how important introducing tools into the classroom, as well as how enhancing technology is for teaching.

There are many questions to be asked when implementing new tools into the classroom. To begin, I would ask if it's easy enough to understand but still challenging enough? It is easily accessible to every student and is it age appropriate? (especially as an Early Childhood major) Another big question would be how much my students would benefit and take away from it. Is there any other tool/device out there that is better? I would also have to see how well it works because teachers are already offered a limited amount of time, so any malfunctions with the device is less time a student has to learn. There are a ton of questions to ask while introducing new tools and it is so important to make sure that they are all covered in order to have a successful learning environment. 

Answering these questions also help show the positive attributes as well as potential barriers regarding new tools. Adding new tools creates endless possibilities for my students and helps expand their accessibility of knowledge. It allows students to learn using different methods and it can help students who may learn better by doing hands on activities but also can relate to students who are visual learners. There are potential barriers though, for example, it could malfunction at any time and like I said earlier, teachers are only offered a limited amount of time, so any time trying to fix a new tool is time wasted. It could also be hard to relate a new tool to every student, so I believe it is important to make sure that this tool is easily accessed by everyone as well as relates to an individuals learning needs.

First, I will choose a tool that embraces the diversity of my students by recognizing that each student comes with a different background as well as learning style. I will also choose a tool that is time efficient, it won't take too long to set up and my students will get good use out of it. 

The big question I would have to ask about TPACK is how to know which tools are best, especially with how diverse a classroom is. I could go about it by selecting a few of my favorite tools and doing them over and over myself. I could also give options to my students as well by having them pick which ones best fits them. 

Reuse, Redistribute, Revise, Remix

• How do we capture the spirit of open, networked, and participatory communities in our learning environments?
• What does open access look like the classroom?
• What do you see as the future of education in a context where teaching and learning can happen anywhere, anytime, and with anyone?
• How does access to technology impact the use of textbooks in the classroom? Will textbooks in a traditional sense be obsolete?

The majority of people in the U.S. are in some shape or from exposed to the use of technology, especially my generation and the generations below mine. It would be almost impractical to not use it, especially in a classroom setting. I have been using technology in the classroom since I started preschool, and that was almost 15+ years ago, and it has only dramatically increased since then. After watching many videos and reading many blogs and articles about Alec Couros, I have learned an incredible amount about open, networked, and participatory communities, especially in a classroom.  ( http://educationaltechnology.ca/couros/ ) (https://youtu.be/3XaA-ORiveo ) 

There are so many ways teachers can show openness/participatory communities in a classroom. They can have students work on group projects or work in pairs, which allows them to all share their own, unique ideas as well as learn from their peers. They can also work in a group by using google docs if they wanted to incorporate technology as well, which allows both students to work at home, if needed, on the same document together. 

Open, networked, and participatory communities can also help teachers as well. If a teacher is stuck on a lesson and they are not sure the best way to present or teach it, they can easily look up blogs or youtube channels to get a better idea on how to approach it. This also goes for students, if they have a hard time understanding an idea or subject from a certain teacher, they can access a different approach online from another teacher to better understand. Making a classroom open and making it a participatory community, is only beneficial to the students, as well as educators. 

There are also benefits to allowing education and learning to happen anywhere, anytime, and with anyone. Why should learning ever be restricted?? Some people learn better by themselves, some learn better face-to-face, some function better in the morning, some at night; it allows students to do what's best for them and learn the way they want to learn. Personally, I like online classes because it allows me to work at my own pace, but I also like face-to-face for classes that may be harder to do alone, like math or history. With this class, there's really no need to go into a classroom, I have access to everything on my computer and can do it whenever I want. I believe education should have multiple options and should be customized to fit student needs. 

I do not believe textbooks will ever be completely obsolete. I would much rather have hard copies of text in my hands because I always pay more attention and follow along much better. With textbooks you can highlight, make footnotes, circle words or sentences to come back to, and you never have to worry about connecting to wifi or internet.  As for others, many enjoy an online copy not only because it's cheaper, but it's easier to carry (Because as every college student knows, textbooks weigh a lot). One good thing about online textbooks is that students can easily access them at home (if they have a computer) so they never have to worry about forgetting or misplacing them. I do believe with the technology we have today textbooks will definitely be used a lot less, but never be completely gone. 

Week 3- to share or to not share?

•   How should teachers and leaders share their work?

•   How do you decide what to share and what not to share?

•   What needs to be learned "off stage" so that students do not have their failures immortalized more than their successes?

•   Does sharing always have to be online or can face to face sharing be as effective?

•   What is the value of sharing "everything"?

•   As a teacher, how will you cultivate the community engagement you need for helpful and constructive criticism?

•   What are some ways you respond to the perception or belief that public writing (or media) etc should be formal or error-free?

•   How can we begin to create a culture that encourages transparency?

Sharing is something everyone learns at an early age and is a quality that everyone should possess throughout their whole life, even as adults. After watching numerous videos and reading many articles, I have learned so much about the effectiveness of teachings sharing their plans and ideas, not only to their students, but other teachers as well. Sharing their work and ideas will only be beneficial and super effective. After reading, 3 Reasons Why You Should Share and 3 Things You can Do to Start Sharing and watching the video of Dean Shareski, I have seen first hand not just how effective sharing ideas in blogs is, but how EASY it is. Teachers can share their future lessons, past lessons, ideas, and even their teaching skills, like what seems to work and what doesn't, in these blogs. 

Teachers should already know what they should post and to not post. If the teacher has to question whether or not to post something, they probably shouldn't. They should only posts blogs or tweets that are positive, uplifting, or beneficial to other students or teachers. It really all comes down to common sense. Having social media myself, like twitter and Facebook, I know what’s right to post and what’s not right. I know not to use vulgar language or to post things that later I might regret or something that may start unnecessary drama. Teachers should look at it the same way- if it's not uplifting or beneficial to the people who interact with it, then don't post it. (Which also answers the question of "What needs to be learned "off stage" so that students do not have their failures immortalized more than their successes?")

I used to think that face-to-face sharing used to be more effective, but after taking many online courses, I see many benefits. For example, if I learned something in class but did not have time to write it down, I can't really go back to in when I am trying to study in my room, however, online I have everything right in front of me and can re-watch a video or go back and find a slide if I need to. On top of that, online there is an endless amount of information and help, while in person there may be only a limited amount. The down side to online is that it can also be distracting, for example, sometimes while watching a video, I get distracted by twitter or Facebook because it's more easily accessed. Another downside to online is that it lacks the physical learning and 

engagement. I believe using both face-to-face and online courses together would be the most beneficial. 

Sharing "everything" just means there is nothing to hide and whoever is doing so, is bringing and sharing all ideas that they may have to contribute to other teachers or students. It helps their peers come up with new ideas or lessons and in the end is beneficial to someone who is lost or confused. 

As a teacher, I plan to cultivate the community engagement for both helpful and constructive criticism by first forming a trusting and fully engaging relationship with both my coworkers and students. By creating a good relationship, I open the up the doors to be helpful but also constructive when needed. If I am not giving out constructive criticism then I am not doing my best and fulfilling my responsibilities as an effective teacher.

Public writing should definitely be error-free, because who believes and wants to read an article that has numerous errors? It says so many things about the author and their credibility as a teacher or educator. There are so many devices that help catch mistakes, so it should be hard to have misspelled words. Although, mistakes do happen and will happen, I do believe for the MOST part public writing or media needs to be mostly formal and error-free.

To create a culture that encourages transparency, we need to start with the leadership within the school. By connecting through social media or other online platforms only gives an advantage and is very valuable. Teachers can share notes/ with other teachers and be clear with student expectations and girls, so they can also be apart of the transparent culture. (Read this article if you want to know more about transparent communities, I found it very interesting, http://ww2.kqed.org/mindshift/2014/05/19/how-transparency-can-transform-school-culture/ ).

http://langwitches.org/blog/2014/12/21/3-reasons-why-you-should-share-and-3-things-what-you-can-do-to-share/