Cool Idea for Internet Safety

Resources Abound for Setting Up Internet safety Programs

By Jennifer Hanson

This article discussed the proper ways in which we can educate students on how to safely use the Internet. Though the article doesn’t give a lot of tips for students, it does give advice on having the instruction be effective.

Among the ideas of Internet safety education, one of them was for students to learn safety from their local law enforcement. By bringing local law enforcement on campus, students can learn and have better relationships with the police all at the same time. This can have a huge community impact.

Some other ideas include training parents on how to educate their children and training students leaders to train other students. By training parents, they feel involved in the education of their students, which may result in better grades. This may also increase the community feel. By having student leaders, there are opportunities to all ready train “America’s future leaders” in the process of leading.

The tips that were given for students mostly had to do with students thinking before putting information on the internet. Students are encouraged to think about what information they share, or even what screen names they may choose. If any student feels threatened, they should tell someone or report it at http://www.cybertipline.com/.

This article mostly seemed about having the community come together over Internet safety rather than actually talking about Internet safety. I do feel that there are many ways to best communicate the information in a way that more than learning happens. I like the idea of proper Internet education and feel that it should taught to all students.

Electronic White Boards

Build your own Board by Kieth Vallis and Peter Williamson

This article discusses the benefits of electronic whiteboards, along with discussing the difference between a whiteboard and a bright board. Today many teachers are switching to these electronic whiteboards. These are boards that are projected onto a screen and are completely interactive. A teacher can use a "marker" to write on the board, save notes that are written, and even surf the web on the board.

The major difference between a whiteboard and a brightboard seems to be compatibility and price. The bright board seems to be more compatible and allows more flexibility. It is able to carry extra markers and keyboards with its system, which allows more people to use the board at the same time. White boards sound like they are more expensive because they are less work. These system are permantely set up in a classroom.

Another big difference between the two is the best way to use them. The brightboard is the best choice for an interactive classroom. Students have more possibilities of being a part of the learning process in the classroom with all the capabilities of extra keyboards and markers. The brightboards are best for classrooms where they teacher will be doing all of the teaching process.

Personally I'm not a huge fan of either of these technologies. I do see the benefits of both of these items: Less cost over time, interactive capabilities, and the ability to enlarge interactive images. However, my view is highly based on an experience high school. In a class that used this technology, the program would constantly break down and wouldn't even make a difference when it was used. My opinion; nothing with ink markers on a real whiteboard.

Blog 4.... Follow Up from the last Blog

READERS RESPOND

My past blog was on an article that discussed the question of whether or teachers should use modern-day networking sites to become "friends" with their students (biggest example was Facebook).  The article pointed out both the pros and the cons of using technology for educational purposes. In a poll that the readers responded to, 83% of the readers said that teachers should not be "friends" with their students on social networking sites. 

Those who believed that these friendships should be avoided believed so because of the fear of losing the "teacher-student" relationship, and the respect that goes with that. These people do not want students to be looking into every aspect of their lives, finding faults, or bringing personal issues into the classroom. Other teachers argue that they do want to see what is going on in the lives of their students.

Teachers who said yes that these sites can help build trust between the teacher and their students. The teachers are given an opportunity to be a good example for their students in real life by not posting anything inappropriate. These people also believe that the responsibility to avoid any sort of dangerous conduct that could occur on these sites falls to the teachers.

Once again, I agree with the majority of the people. The possible bad that could come out of using these sites to become your student's "friends" far outweighs the good that could come out of it. 

Add this Friend?

Should Students be Your "Friends" by Diana Fingal


The article written discussed the debate of whether or not teachers today should become friends with their students on networking websites, primarily Facebook. There article begins by pointing out an incredibly surprising fact for our culture: Facebook has become just as popular (if not more, as argued in the article) amongst adults than it has for kids. Adults have been able to use Facebook to get in touch with old friends and network with people they never see.
The article then presents the argument; should teachers use Facebook as a way to network with their students? Two different sides are presented in a well manner. Those who believe teachers should have a right (and a benefit) to having their students linked to their personal web pages argue that this interaction allows teachers to better relate to their students. Teachers can better teach if they are also able to connect with their students personally. Also, they believe that the presence of teachers on Facebook allows to students to learn the proper way to handle having a Facebook.
Those who argue against this believe that this kind of relationship “violates the student-teacher relationship”. Besides a possible lack of respect for the teacher, this could also lead to stuff such as flirting and other inappropriate behavior.

Before I give my opinion, I will say that I totally believe that teachers at the high school level (which is where I want to teach) should be working hard to find effective ways to run part of class over the internet. I STRONGLY believe that this creates an interest in the subject in the minds of the students and prepares them for life in this “technology” era. However, under NO circumstances do I think a teacher should become friends with students in his class room, mostly because I don’t see the need. There are other ways to create a safe environment on the internet, an environment where the teacher is still the teacher and not just a peer. I think that the dangers of flirting, inappropriate conduct, and other web based issues show the possible “pros” do not match the possible “cons” of this networking.

Triple Threat Teacher

To cool for School? No Way!
By Punya Mishra and Matthew Koehler Written May 2009


This article described the three areas in which a teacher must have knowledge in order to educate their students in a successful way, and how technology is a huge part of that. The first part was that a teacher must have content knowledge. This means that the teacher must have knowledge of what they are teaching, which seems to be the most obvious characteristic. The second skill teachers must have is known as pedagogy knowledge. This means that teachers must have knowledge on how to teach. I felt the example that was given in the article was a perfect definition of what pedagogy knowledge is. They say that though someone may have a high level math degree, they may not have the pedagogy knowledge, or teaching skills, to properly educate students in the subject. I found this example humorous because I was in a similar situation as a high school student. The third area a teacher must have success in is in technological knowledge. A teacher must be able to use the modern technology available today to help increase the education of their students. This third area was the most discussed part of the article. The article described that while technology today (Facebook, Search Engines, Chat Rooms, Twitter, etc.) may not have been created for the use of education, teachers can still use these technologies for teaching. Through these areas, teachers can work on their TPACK (Technological, Pedagogy, And Content Knowledge).

I felt this article was extremely helpful in focusing on the three areas that make an excellent teacher. I think the obvious fact was that a teacher must know the subject they are teaching. However I think it is always important to remember that knowing the subject and teaching the subject are two completely different things. A good teacher knows the best ways to help their students learn the subject.

The idea presented that a teacher must be able to take new technologies and use them for education is something that I strongly agree with. Though this isn’t easy, I love the following quote from the article: “Teachers need to develop a willingness to play with technologies and an openness to building new experiences for students so that fun, cool tools can be educational.” A teacher can only use the tools to their advantage if they have a willingness to do so. I certainly plan on using “Student technology” (EX: Facebook, Twitter, etc.) because I believe it allows teachers to connect with the student better and thus allows them to educate them in a more effective way.

Intertesting Teaching = Interested Learners

The article, “Chatting it up On-line” by Pamela Livingston, discusses the benefits of her setting up an on-line chat between her students and an author, along with discussing the necessary preparations for getting such a chat ready. The chat was between students at Chestnut Hill Academy and author of the “Magic Tree House” books, Mary Pope Osborne.

Livingston starts the article by pointing out many important issues to think through while preparing for the chat. The first thing to properly coordinate the event is to actually register for the chat you are going to participate in. Beyond registering, Pamela writes that you must continue to check in on the people are company you are coordinating the chat with. This is very important, because it allows the teacher to know for a fact that the chat is going to take place.

Another preparation for the chat is getting the technology ready. This is incredibly important as this is the most uncertain part of the project. I believe that checking on this area as often as possible is crucial because without the technology, face to face chatting is basically all that is available.

Pamela also discusses properly preparing the children. This included telling them later than everyone else, having them prepare questions, and being sure not to tell the students until it is certain that the activity will be taking place. This is probably the most important task in order to make this project as successful as it can be.

After reading this article, I feel that this could be an incredibly helpful tool in making the educational experience of young students more enjoyable and more productive. This allows the students, as Pamela says, to really connect with the author of a book in “real” time. With writing being one of the most important skills to have in the educational career of a student, this could help not only make student’s better writers, but may also increase their interest in writing. That really is the key to making students the best learners; when the student has an interest in learning the subject.

Standards: NETS 4. (See http://cnets.iste.org for more informationon the NETS Project.)

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