Voki

Bullying

Bullying is an issue in schools all across the worlds. Most bullying takes place during the school day, and most victims remain silent. Although classmates know that bullying is wrong, they do nothing about it because they aren't the ones being victimized. It broke my heart to watch the victims being bullied when we watched "Bully" in class. I witnessed a lot of bullying in high school, and nothing was ever done about it. Teachers would act like they were oblivious to what was going on when they were actually just too lazy to take an action. At my high school, students were not only verbally abused; they were physically abused as well. It truly is heartbreaking to know that bullying often results in suicidal thoughts and sometimes even results in suicide. Bullying may never truly stop, but teachers can help a lot with this issue. When I was in the tenth grade, I witnessed a special student being verbally abused right in front of the teacher's desk. This teacher not only sat there and did nothing; she laughed at the student being bullied. This is not okay, and teachers like this should not even be teachers. As a future educator, I will make it a top priority to get to know everything I can about my students. Many students have a terrible home life and come to school as a way to escape. When these students get bullied when they come to school, they have no where else to turn. Bullying is something that should not be taken lightly, and there should be serious consequences for these people.

Augmented Reality Snags a Coveted Spot in Classrooms

Laura Devaney discusses how augmented reality is becoming increasingly common in K-12 classrooms. Augmented reality blends the real world with interactive and enhanced content through the use of technology. With an augmented reality application, you will be directed to abundant information by scanning something such as a historical landmark. This app can enhance anything that a student is learning. Theresa McGhee, a K-5 art teacher, uses this app with her students and says, "The kids think it's amazing that they can just hold something in their hand and see that something is going on in front of their screen". McGhee loves using the app in her classroom because her students are able to explore and "really dig deeper into their own learning". Augmented reality is a great way to incorporate technology in the classroom.

Surprisingly, this is a technological advance that I am excited about for educators and for students. I downloaded the free 3D Augmented Reality App on my iPhone. It had trouble figuring out how to work it, but I did get a better understanding of what augmented reality actually is. With access to augmented reality in the classroom, students will truly be able to dig deeper into their own learning as McGhee suggested. With iPads being brought into more classrooms everyday, this app will become more popular in schools. Many students learn through interaction, and this app allows them to interact through technology. I have two more years until I have my very own classroom, so there is no telling what new inventions for the classroom will be created by then. I think that augmented reality will quickly a big thing for learning in the classroom.

Five Essentials to Create Connected Students

Full time teacher and IT Administrator, Vicki Davis, suggests that technology in the classroom is a must for having well-connected students. She says that there are five essentials that students need to be: a connected author, a connected publisher, a connected conversationalist, a strategic disconnector, and a curious, lifelong pursuer of ingenious solutions. Davis encourages teachers to shift this generation from being consumers to being creators. As she concludes, she writes, "We must take time for inventing and programming and using technology. Technology isn't vocational; it is college prep, vocational and life skills, all rolled into one. And it's everywhere: not just in every classroom or in every school.

Davis made some good points in her article about technology in the classroom. Technology is becoming more important for students everyday. It makes me wonder just how much technology will be used in the classroom once I graduate and have my own students. Although I am still wary of so much technology use in the classroom, I am becoming more open-minded about it. I agree with the five essentials that Davis discussed in her article, and like how she encourages educators to shift this generation from being consumers and creators. With technology advancing everyday, it is vital for future educators to make time to understand the positive and negative that comes with excessive technology use in the classroom.

21st Century Skills

President of the 21st Century Skills, Ken Kay, discusses how important 21st century skills are in the classroom. He believes that students would be more successful by learning these skills, and they should be taught the skills of creativity, problem solving, and critical thinking. With 21st century skills, Kay says that students will be prepared to "think, learn, work, solve problems, communicate, and contribute effectively throughout their lives". Arizona, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, South Dakota, West Virginia, and Wisconsin have already started implementing this program. 

I certainly agree that 21st century skills are extremely important and should be taught in today's classrooms. In my opinion, these skills are more vital for success than what is currently being taught in classrooms. If these 21st century skills could be combined with what is already being taught, students would certainly benefit. The Common Core Standards have already been introduced, but I think that 21st century skills should be a higher priority. Most of what students learn in school isn't going to help them in the real world, and a great deal of what they are taught will quickly be forgotten. However, if students were taught 21st century skills, they could carry these skills with them for the rest of their lives.  I definitely think that these skills are vital for success and should be taught in today's classrooms. 

Inspiration comments

Erika
- visually appealing and great pictures for "Where the Wild Things are"
Jacqueline
- good illistrations and creative activities for "Dick and Jane"
Mary Katherine
- could use more pictures, but good activities and links for the book "Corduroy"
Jennifer
-well organized with plenty of pictures and good activities for learning about the Earth's Biome
Amanda
-great lesson about "Context Clues" with good activities, but pictures look cluttered
Jordan
-very organized, visually appealing pictures and activities on "Hurricane Force"
Johnathan
-interesting topic and information, but there are too many colors and pictures, which make it difficult to look at

Why Tough Teachers Get Good Results

In Joanna Lipman’s article “Why Tough Teachers Get Good Results”, she talks about her “tough teacher” that she had growing up. Mr. K, her former orchestra teacher, taught his students by calling them “idiots” when they made a mistake and showed little sympathy. When Mr. K died, he was celebrated by forty years worth of former students and colleagues. Lipman believes that Mr. K’s teaching style is the most effective way to teach and that it results in wonderful results from students. With this tough teaching style, students become more confident since they have been taught to never accept failure and to always try again. Lipman says that the following eight principles should be applied to today’s classrooms: a little pain is good for you, drill baby drill, strict is better than nice, creativity can be learned, grit trumps talent, praise makes you weak, stress makes you strong.

Although tough teachers may indeed get better results, there are parts of Lipman’s article that I do not agree with. I disagree that “praises make you weak”. When I was in Elementary school, it gave me confidence and made me want to do even better when I was praised by one of my teachers. The teachers that made the biggest impact on my life were the ones that encouraged a positive classroom environment and lifted students up instead of tearing them down. I definitely think that it’s important to be “tough” on students, but teachers should be tough in a positive way. Lipman’s former teacher, Mr. K, called his students “idiots” when they messed up, and his biggest compliment to students was “not bad”. I think that positive reinforcement and encouragement is extremely important for elementary students. When I become a teacher, I want to be a positive role model for my students, and I want them to feel comfortable coming to me with any problems that they may have. However, I will still be a “tough teacher”, just not in the way that Mr. K was. Although this teaching method may have worked for him, I believe that students need encouragement and positive feedback from their teachers. 

Do Not Track Me

Before downloading “Do Not Track Me”, I never really considered being tracked by anyone while surfing the internet. Once I downloaded this onto my computer, I logged in to my Facebook account. It showed me that it had blocked 1 company that was tracking me on Facebook. This kind of freaked me out and made me wonder why anyone would want to track me on Facebook. I then logged on to my Twitter account and saw that it had blocked three trackers from following me. I honestly didn't think I would have any trackers on any of my social media websites. I’m glad that I now have “Do Not Track Me” on my laptop to block any other trackers that I may have, and I think that all computer users should download this to protect their privacy.