Class Notes 14

This week we learned several things about smart boards and how to “build-your-own” systems. The class began with Charles Pax setting up the wiimote to a laptop (that was hooked up with the projector) to make a cheap alternative to the smartboard. Basically this was started by the people that came out of the Human-Computer Interface Project. The idea is that a wiimote has a camera built into it and it can detect infrared radiation. Once the bluetooth sensor connected with the wiimote the computer can identify the different locations an infrared pen is clicking. See past Journal entries for more details.

Chris then went through the different functions of the smartboard and notebook software. Most of this was stuff that I had prior experience with.

Finally Charles closed out the class with a cool 3-D printer. The idea is that you can design a 3-dimensional figure on your computer and then send it to the printer which will output a tangible item based on your design. The machine uses plastic wire which it melts down and manipulate into the appropriate shape.

 

Journal 13

This week we had a very cool presentation by a man that help build the Hayden Planetarium. Basically, as a result of building the planetarium, Mr. Friedman thought it might be possible to build a small scale model that could be transported to school districts.

The result was the Micro-dome, a small concave half-dome that has a advanced computer system and projector attached. From here he wrote a software program that uses real time data and satellite images to create this universe model. Our students got the opportunity to see the far reaches of the solar system and beyond. He even took us out to the end of the measurable universe and showed students why we have the limitations we did. Students thoroughly enjoyed the presentation and I believe they learned a lot.

 

Project 13

I was unable to create a quantitative experiment because it really doesn’t fit into the parameters of the learning objectives. The lesson is to have student perform observational experiments to develop the idea of classification and binomial nomenclature: binomial-nomenclature-activity

My tool is a metric ruler: ruler

 

Class 13 Notes

Today is class we sort of ventured out in several directions; a hodge-podge if you will. We began the class by taking a look at everyone’s video projects and filling out a Wufoo survey to assess the project. From here we observed a presentation from Nabil about online student response systems (polleverywhere). This is the same system that I was talking about several weeks back in my blog. We all went onto the site and tried using it to make surveys of our own.

From here Chris uploaded the peer assessment onto his blog and allowed us to receive the constructive criticism. From here the class target’s focus changed to “cheap and easy lesson you can do without expensive technology.” Chris gave us a worksheet lab where we had to work through and construct the Law of Reflection. The lab was solid, the activities were varied, and even included content that students would relate to (south park). The best part is that is nearly free.

 

Class 13 Activity

http://www.polleverywhere.com/free_text_polls/MTkzMjgzODE5OA

http://www.polleverywhere.com/multiple_choice_polls/MTIxNDAxMDc0OQ

 

Journal 12

Technology on trial! As I may of mentioned, I’m on the board for rewriting the technology regulations for the district. As they are right now, the rules are purposely vague and broad to dissuade teachers from venturing too far into the technology world. This is depressing, especially when you look at all the amazing possibilities for education.

Well score one for technology. This past Monday I presented the PollEverywhere student response system to the middle school and high school principle, the director of technology, director of instruction/supervision, and the science department. It is my hope that cell phone regulations will begin to lighten in order to promote greater communication and technological access to students. In addition, during the meeting I also presented to the group “how to make a smartboard using a Wii remote.” Everyone was truly floored by the possibilities of the wii remote.

I decided it was so cool that I’d show my students. Their reactions were even more remarkable. Most of them sent me emails saying that they were excited by this and are going to try to set it up at home. I think its great that this kind of thing is motivating students to get involved in science and technology.

 

Project 12

http://sites.google.com/site/finscience/Home

 

Class Notes 12

Today we learned about disability software called Kurzweil. Basically this software allows you to drag text into a work space and manipulate it. (In addition, if text is not directly provided for the students they can type right into the workspace.) Some of the things that they can do is highlight and underline the text, check definitions and find synonyms, and most powerful of all the features is the ability to have the computer read off what is written. (You can adjust the speed and voice that the computer uses.)

In the second half of class, we worked on websites. This was not very helpful for me as I have already used google sites several times and teach a significant amount of professional development on website creation. That being said, it’s always beneficial to hone your skills.

 

Journal 11

This week I used the presentation we created as a class review lesson. It worked so well. The whole class was excited about the activity, vocal about their ideas, and even more impressed that they were able to use their cell phones in class. That’s right! I broke the cardinal rule of teaching… no cell phones in class. However, there is a perfectly reasonable explanation for this. As an individual without student response controllers, I wanted to find a way to allow my students to have the response system experience, however, without controllers it is quite difficult.

After a little bit of searching on google I found my solution. There is an online application (free for teachers) called Polleverywhere.com. It provides users a number that they can text their answers to . The site then converts the responses into a graphic format much in the same way as the TurningPoint software. You can even embed the graphic collector for each question into a website or blog like I did: http://jfinleyscience.blogspot.com/. Students could then see the result tabulating in real time! I even showed the Technology director at the school and she seemed very excited about the idea.

 

Project 11

Dynamics Student Response Activity - Please see my journal entry for this week for an explanation for how this assignment evolved and was implemented in the classroom. 

 

This technology definitely promotes innovation for obvious reasons (mostly the fact that this is a generally new way to incorporate technology into instruction) but more importantly it promotes efficiency and community in the classroom. Typically, students get to participate in the lesson one person at a time. Many students are left out in this model, and as a result, the teacher rarely gets to see where the students are as a whole. With the response system, students each get their own individual voice. Even students that don’t usually talk/share in class will get involved in the response system, therefore promoting a community of learning rather than just learning for those that speak the loudest. This also helps you as a teacher because you get a more accurate picture of the students understanding in terms of a formative assessment. This means great efficiency for you as a teacher.

Below is the conversation between me and a representative from Turning Point:

James,

 

I see that you downloaded Turning Point Anywhere from our website.  Have you used seen our student response systems used in a classroom setting?  Please let me know if you have any questions or if you need anything else from me at this time.

 

Have a great day!
Kathleen
_______________________________________________________________________
Hello Kathleen,

I’m glad you contacted me. As a member of the technology committee for New Providence school district (specifically for the middle school and the science department), I am responsible for evaluating up and coming educational hardware and software. Currently, I am in the process of evaluating several student response systems in the hopes that our district may begin investing in them. I was speaking to another high school teacher in the area, Chris D’Amato, and he said that you may have a program where a sample class set of remotes are provided for a trial period. If this program is still in place I would be very interested in getting in touch with the individual responsible for enrollment. We are currently pursuing a similar program with SmartTech (Senteos) and I think it would be incredible beneficial to have hands on comparison of multiple systems prior to investing in one. Thank you very much for your help and I look forward to hearing from you.

James Finley
________________________________________________________________________
James,

Thank you for your interest in Turning Point.  Attached is a form to fill out in order to do a free 30 trial of our student response systems.  Please fill it out and return it to me and I will get the demo kit out to you as soon as possible. 

Have a great day!
Kathleen
________________________________________________________________________
demo-application-9-08