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FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT IN THE DIGITAL AGE Blogging With Third Graders

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FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT IN THE DIGITAL AGE Blogging With Third Graders

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I agree with the article when it discusses that online book clubs provide a great wait to differentiate instruction. This is because with the online format, "Students’ blog posts make their thinking transparent and provide the teacher with valuable information about individual learners." Also, the online blog provided a way for the teacher to monitor progress for each individual student.

I disagree with the article when it said that the teacher used one of the students in his class to show an example of how o improve to the whole class. I do not like this, even with the student's permission, because this can be very discouraging. I feel that the teacher should have found another blog to show as an example of how to improve, or even demonstrate himself.

I don’t understand how some teachers may have enough time to educate and teach their students how to do the online book club if they are at a lower reading level or do not have much experience with technology.

I need to remember that with online book clubs, "Rather than assigning students a specific time to discuss their books, students could post their thinking and communicate about the text anytime from anywhere within a blog." This is huge advantage for the students and teacher because the teacher could hear and participate in valuable discussions happening in each group. With the typical book clubs, a teacher would participate in one group discussion, but possibly miss another group's valuable discussion because they are busy with another group.

I can make a connection to this article because it provides great starter site for blogs with kids. I have never used a blog with my students, but it gives me all the information that I need to do so. Also, it instructs a good way to introduce blogs to students and what process works.

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Wiki Use in the 21st-Century Literacy Classroom: A Framework for Evaluation

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Wiki Use in the 21st-Century Literacy Classroom: A Framework for Evaluation

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I agree with the first part of the article where the authors discuss in today's world, students do not know a life without technology. By the time students reach the age of 20, they will have spent way more time using technology than sitting down and reading an actual book. This is why the use of technology in the classroom has become so important in increasing student engagement in the classroom, students just aren't engaged with paper and pencil any longer and we must find ways to enhance the learning experience.

I don't disagree with anything the article is discussing. With the need to increase technology literacy in the classroom, the article explores the use of wiki's in the classroom and how when used correctly it can enhance writing experiences for students and allow them to share their work with peers and teachers.

As stated before, there isn't anything I don't understand in the article. wiki's provide a means to engage students in the technology world in writing. Wiki's allow students to be exposed  to knowledge and sharing and provide opportunities to view and create text in different formats.

I need to remember using wiki's is a great idea to share with my teachers to use in the classroom to get students involved in more writing in their classroom.

I can see/make a connection to this with my school because writing is part of our improvement plan going forward. We are submersing ourselves in a blended classroom model this year. We concentrated on math and reading and incorporating technology in with it. This class has come at the perfect time as we explore ways to increase ways to get students writing more.

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How to Use Social Media to Strengthen Student Writing

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How to Use Social Media to Strengthen Student Writing

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·      I agree with the article when it says that teachers say that today's digital technologies make it easier to shape and improve students' writing. I agree with this because I definitely see how the technology can engage the students more as well as being more relatable to their everyday lives. Most students already know how to use various social media platforms, so utilizing them in their education would not be very difficult to teach.

·      I disagree that blogging has become a primary resource for teachers to communicate with their students. In all of the schools and teachers that I have worked with, not one has used a blog.

·      I don’t understand why I have never seen a teacher use social media as a tool to teach writing. After reading this article, I see how important it is for educators to incorporate into their lessons and classrooms.

·      I need to remember that "social media can be a tool where students are encouraged to use their creativity combined with personal expression to improve and strengthen their writing." Whenever I think of social media, I think of it as an application for your personal life and not for your education, which is not true.

·      I can make a connection to this because the school where I student taught at was a technology school and most teachers used Twitter as a form of communication with parents and students. However, they did not use it as a writing resource much.

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Wikis: Promoting Collaborative Literacy through Affordable Technology in Content-Area Classrooms

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Wikis: Promoting Collaborative Literacy through Affordable Technology in Content-Area Classrooms

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·      I agree with the article where it says, "Educators must consider if the wiki activity is appropriate for the learner objectives and if the students will benefit from the integration of technology. Any technology can be overused or used inefficiently and detract from student learning." I have seen where some students almost get "addicted" to the technology, especially if they use it a lot at home. This becomes almost an unhealthy obsession and the student is not benefiting from the use like they should.

·      I disagree with the article when it says, "A project that involved the use of wikis would have enabled the student to work collaboratively with the rest of the class without the threat of isolation." To me, even though an educator implements the wiki technology into a lesson, there is still the possibility of seclusion. What if no one comments on the students information? Also, the students are working collaboratively so that means they will be doing some work together and the possibility of seclusion is possible.

·      I don’t understand how you would convince other teachers how to use the wiki technology when they are strongly against it, no matter how many trainings that are provided and lack of technology knowledge they may have.

·      I need to remember that wikis can teach students to criticize thoughts and ideas, not people. This article points out that this is true because wikis are a forum structure to discuss ideas and not face to face with another person. Also, with the wikis, you can easily connect other content areas to writing that will "allow students to critically evaluate the world around them because learners are able to expand learning to make meaning of content".

·      I can make a connection to this because I do see the many benefits of using and incorporating technologies into the classroom. Also, wikis are an affordable technology that can be implemented into most classrooms. With working in JCPS, I have been in many low-income areas that do not have a way to receive funding for laptops and tablets to use various technologies.

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How to Use Social Media to Strengthen Student Writing

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How to Use Social Media to Strengthen Student Writing

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I agree with the article when it talks about consistency. If teachers do not consistently use this form of writing, then students will not learn how to correctly use social media for educational purposes. The article mentions that practice makes perfect. If we do not teach our students how to use social media as a tool and do not give them consistent chances to practice this, they will not fully learn how to use social media as a proper learning tool. It must be taught first, and then give students ample opportunities to practice.

I disagree...I think that the use of social media in the classroom needs to be very monitored and needs to be evaluated for each grade level. Using instagram in my classroom of 5th graders does not seem like the best idea. The article mentions that platforms such as Twitter and Instagram teach students how to be brief. This is the opposite of what I am trying to instill in my 5th graders. My students are still at the age where they constantly ask how many paragraphs they need and want to write as little as possible. I am trying to encourage them to be more descriptive in their writing. Also, not all parents may want their students to have social media, even if it is for educational purposes. This could create potential problems for using social media in the classroom.

I don’t understand how to use social media in younger grades. It seems like the use of social media for writing would be more geared toward middle and high school.

I need to remember to try blogging with my class. This seemed like a possible and creative way for students to create a personal narrative. Students could create blogs to share events from their lives and publish them for others. It is a good way for students to share about themselves and incorporate writing.

I can make a connection to where the article talks about collaboration. Technology has been a great way for my students to collaborate on writing. When asked after presenting their backpacks, every student in my class aside from 2 said that they would rather work with a partner or a group. Students can learn from one another when they collaborate rather than always hearing information come from the teacher.

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Cloud-Based Collaborative Writing and the Common Core Standards

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Cloud-Based Collaborative Writing and the Common Core Standards

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I agree with the article when it states "The cloud- based writing environment has the potential to facilitate effective peer collaboration by allowing easy and simultaneous access from different locations and through convenient electronic
feedback..." I have found this to be very true with my students. Since they can access google docs at home, some students will go home and continue writing at home. I have also had students share their writing with me and it is much easier for me to add comments rather than having to take home stacks of papers. I can always comment on their writing while they are doing it as well so that they have instant feedback. My students are more likely to revise a mistake if they are writing on the chromebooks rather than on paper where they have to redo the entire thing for a few mistakes.

I disagree that many students use google docs for its simplest form of collaboration. I have many students that are writing a story together because google docs allows them to do this. After I showed students how to share documents with one another, my students share their work with each other all the without me even asking them to share it with a partner.

I don’t understand why more teachers aren't trained in the use of technology in the classroom. The study stated that those in this district were all given training prior to the implementation of the one-to-one technology and google apps. More teachers should receive training on how to properly use technology in the classroom if it is becoming an expectation.

I need to remember that it has been shown that students "develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new
approach.”  and "Google Docs also offered opportunities
for students to regularly write for both extended
and shorter time frames." I have noticed that even some of my students that dislike writing, will write more if they are using a chromebook. "Students
not only understood grammar and writing mechanics
in an engaging way, but also employed critical thinking
skills. When confronted with errors, students had
to understand “how… you analyze and make a decision
about what needs to be fixed."

I can make a connection to the article when it states that most students say they prefer to write on google docs. As of now, our school is not one to one. We have to rotate who gets to write on the chromebooks during writing because I do not have enough for each student. My students have expressed that they would much rather write on the chromebook than on paper, and will always ask to use a chromebook during writing.

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Harnessing Technology to Manage Writer's Workshop for Struggling Students

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Harnessing Technology to Manage Writer's Workshop for Struggling Students

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I agree with the articles as it discusses the benefits and draw backs to workshop model. A benefit mentioned is the potential for students to develop their craft. While the drawbacks include establishing routines and student engagement issues and management, as well as time constraints and a lack of monitoring aside from the teacher.

It's not so much that I disagree, as I am curious to know how the writing block was organized for time per component. The article mentions spending 20-40 minutes of writing work time and also incorporating a mini-lesson, guided practice and share time. I'm wondering how much time is suggested for each.

I don’t understand what "a novel form of support " means when the author of the article is discussing supporting struggling writers during independent writing time

I need to remember what she suggests as a digital tool to help the efficiency of writing time, during independent writing, group work and conference. her choice was implementing Google Doc allowing her to provide real time feedback through comments and monitor progress.

I can see/make a connection to another point she made in that using Chromebooks and Google tools cut back on lost instructional time resulting from students loosing or not having materials when needed. As a resource teacher, I can see the value in that as well as still fostering the need to teach students responsibility and organization..