Technophiles+PLC

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 * TECHNOPHILES PLC Reflections (8Y24 Lab 6: Monday 10-12)**
 * HINT: DO NOT post when others are posting. Be patient and wait till they finish. Likewise, post your information as quickly as you can as others may be waiting.**

This is the speaker from the technology showcase workshop, "Integrating 2.0 Tools into the Classroom. Practice and Collaborative Projects. Presented by FrontRow." This speaker is an elementary school teacher who practices what she preaches about technology in the classroom. Not once did she try to sell us on using computers or powerpoint, or smartboards. Her discussion centered around the students. Not only the students in her classroom, but the universal classroom, which the technology that she uses allows she classroom students to interact with. Programs that use technology to collaborate include iEarn.org; Art Miles (teaching about cultures through murals); My Hero; Bat Chen Diaries; Taking it Global; Rock our World; Teddy Bear Project. All of these projects are designed with the students education in mind. They help students to interact with another part of the world, and not only learn the culture and communcation skills, they also learn to care about people from other countries and cultures.
 * INTEGRATING Web 2.0 Tools into the Classroom**
 * Tania Vroenhoven**


 * TRIBES Training **

**//Julia Beacham//**


Gail Phillips is a faculty advisor for Cohort F and provided the basic Tribes training for the group. We were fortunate enough to have two FULL days of training packed with Tribes strategies and activities. This instructional approach is centered around building a positive classroom community through inclusion, influence and community building activities. Tribes is an effective tool for furthering learning and preventing behaviour issues. Even in our training, it was evident the strong community that was built from these activities. As a future teacher, I will definitely set the foundations of my classroom on the Tribes principles. During my practicum placements, I have been able to use a wide range of Tribes community-forming strategies. Students are able to meet with all of their classmates and develop a respect for each other. In our diverse classrooms today, it is critical that teachers LEAD their students in forming a positive and welcoming community through one-on-one relationships.

Myself (Sonia Holden) and Judy W from Epson On January 28th, 2011 I attended the Tech Showcase at Brock. It was a great day of learning for me. The forst seminar I attended was on Literacy. In this seminar I we were intoduced to the new Epson Projector by Judy. This Projector can turn any white surface into an interactive display. I was excited by this new technology because of how cost efficient it is in comparisson to the purchase of a "SmartBoard". The projector can be hung from the cieling and the teacher can stand at the front of the class without casting a shadow on the screen, as with traditional projectors. There is an interactive pen that can be used with the system, and it only takes a few minutes at the start-up of the system to initialize the pen to work. For schools that already have projectors there is an attachment that can be bought for around $500 that will convert any projector into an interactive board. Also, it is great that any hard surface could be painted out white and used as a screen. It is an inexpensive option that can help schools become "high-tech"! What a great tool! Judy was a great presenter, and even though she was there to promote her product, it did not feel like a sales pitch. It was clear that she is excited about bringing technology to students, and that this was her goal. Overall, it was a great day of PD and I learnt a lot! _



On Thursday January 13th, I attended the building futures professional development program. The event had 3 workshops lasting one hour and fifteen minutes. In my opinion, the most interesting was the Learning Mathematics for Teaching workshop conducted by Mrs. Fleming. Understanding and learning about constructivist mathematics pedagogy was my motivation to attend. We learnt about the importance of teaching multiple approaches as a way to develop relational understanding of mathematics. We also discussed how technology can be incorporate into various elements of the math curriculum. The speaker provided us with examples of how to approach questions and students thinking while reading their answers. Additionally we received tools and resources. Good experience!



On January 28th, 2011 I attended the Brock Tech Showcase. I attended the PD event with hopes of gaining insight into integrating technology into my future classroom. I currently feel that this is a weakness that I have and arrived with expectations and hopes of expanding my knowledge and improving my teaching practice. The image above is of myself in the Livescribe workshop where I had the opportunity to meet a local Gd 1 teacher that I had been following on Twitter (@Grade1). She mentioned many practical suggestions about how she uses the pen and it's recording abilities in her classroom. It was inspiring to sit there and listen to her discuss her applications to literacy, DI, and to hear student thinking process and then begin brainstorming how to translate that into a J/! classroom. The most applicable aspect of this pen is it's many uses for differentiating instruction. Using only one simple tool, a pen, students can write, listen, and see the concepts before them. It is a technology that is not very expensive either. After being in the workshop and hearing about it's uses and seeing them from the hands of an active teacher this will be one of the first technologies I ask about when I am in my own classroom. Andi Smith



The Project Wild PD session I attended focused on environmental education, and how to incorporate it into the curriculum. Environmental education is very flexible and can be integrated with language arts, science, mathematics, social studies, the arts, and even health and physical education. The idea is to teach children to be aware of their environment, the ways they affect it, and most importantly, the ways in which they can help the environment through the choices they make every day.

I think that this subject is becoming increasingly important as the science community and media brings light to various environmental issues around the world. I personally try to make environmentally friendly choices, even if they are small. For example, I use a reusable water bottle instead of buying bottled water. I try to recycle everything possible, and I hope to have a garden this summer. Environmental education is something that will be a part of my classroom in the same way that character education will be part of my classroom. If we can teach children to respect and appreciate the world they live in from a young age, the future can only look brighter for them and for generations to come. This is one reason I chose to attend this PD session.

The underlying message I took from this PD session is that change is possible. We never want to present the facts without a solution. Students need to feel empowered to make a difference in their world, and not left feeling hopeless and without options. This is an idea that I will certainly carry into my future classroom.

Jordy Luke

Assistive Technologies Workshop One of the workshops that I attended at the Technology Showcase was the Assistive Technologies Workshop. Marianne Fenner, the leader of the workshop from the Peel District School Board offered information regarding technologies that can be used primarily when teaching a child with a disability. For example, Marianne spoke about a program called Dragon Naturally Speaking, which is a program where a student would be able to speak into a microphone, and the program types it into a word processor. This kind of technology would be useful for someone with a learning disability such as dyslexia, or someone who is not able to type on a keyboard due to gross motor problems. In a classroom, I would use this technology to help those students who possibly had IEP's and needed to be modified. This type of technology does not lend itself to instructional purposes, unless the instruction was to a particular student. I went to particular workshop because I hope to one day work in the education system as a special resource teacher. Special needs is my real passion within the education system and I love seeing what those kids are really capable of. The technologies that Marianne showed us are great tools for these children to use in order to help us as teachers see what they are truly capable of!

Building Futures Workshops - Special EdcuationLaura Gatopoulos

I attended the Building Futures Workshops on Jan.13, 2011 put on by the Ministry of Education. This particular workshop in which I am in with the guest speaker, Maureen Cox, was about Special Education and how to approach special needs in our schools. I think this is a very important issue that you cannot learn enough about as an educator because it is becoming more common in schools. The workshop presented an overall discussion of Special Education because it is such an extensive topic, but we were given some great online resources for Special Education, which I will add at the end. She also presented an interesting video that presented an alternate perspective on children with special needs in schools. It was about an animal school that taught climbing, swimming, running, and flying. It presented different animals in the school that were good in certain areas and not in others such as a squirrel who could climb well but couldn’t fly from the ground up but sailed from branches. We than did an activity where we considered accommodations or modifications for the different animals and also considered if how they did things was unsuccessful or just different. This activity made you think differently about Special Education and I enjoyed the workshop as a whole.

Here are those websites: [|www.ontariodirectors.ca] [|www.edugains.ca] [|www.teachspeced.ca]


 * Teaching and Technology: A Collaborative Educational Showcase, January 28, 2011**
 * Smart Board Interactive Whiteboard in the Classroom**
 * //Sabrina Presta//**



I attended the Technology Showcase on January 28, 2011 and one of the workshops I found to be useful was the Smart Board workshop held by Michael Ward. Michael Ward gave us a brief overview of the Smart Board technology and how it can be used in the classroom. He introduced us to several tools that can be used to make our lessons interactive for our students. He also provided us with a great resource ([|Smart Exchange]) which has already made Smart Board files that can be shared with all teachers to use in their classroom. As a teacher, the Smart Board technology would be great to use to look back on thought processes for specific subjects, specifically math. I found that the Smart Board was most useful for math because it allows students to see their thought process. Also, this is great for students who have missed the lesson, because they are able to view the thought processes. Also, this is a great opportunity for the students to be engaged in their own learning. I chose this presentation because I believe that the Smart Board is a perfect opportunity to keep students engaged and actively participate. Also, I chose it because in my first teaching block, I was able to use the Smart Board, however, I was not knowledgeable about the tools that would have be useful for lessons. I will adapt these strategies highlighted in the future because I now know how to incorporate them into my lessons and the different tools I can use. I will allow students to use the Smart Board for interactive projects and present ideas using the Smart Board. There is a need for this type of strategy in instruction because students want to have fun while learning. Technology captures their attention and allows them to actively participate and engage in their own learning. I found that the Math Tools on the Smart Board were fascinating because it is amazing what it can do, especially for the intermediate grades. It is hard to use manipulatives in the intermediate grades, but by using the Math Tools on the Smart Board, there are a variety of tools that can be used that are applicable to the intermediate grades which they will enjoy using.



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On January 13, 2011 I attended the Building Futures Workshops. Before we got started on the events for the day we had a guest speaker, Sara, who spoke about her experiences as a pre-service teacher and now as a full-time kindergarten teacher. In the photo Sara is second from the left and I am the first on the right (Danielle Bernier). Her speech was very entertaining and she even offered some good resources for kindergarten teachers. Even though I am not a primary candidate I still found her talk educational. She provided her personal experiences in the classroom, how some children were harder to deal with than others and I can definitely relate to that! During the day I also attended the effective instruction on literacy workshop which was SO beneficial. Literacy is so important in the curriculum and this workshop offered fantastic ideas for developing literacy in the classroom. The workshop itself was interactive and those involved were engaged in collaborative learning. What better way to learn is there? The information on assessment methods for literacy were helpful because they gave me some great ideas to use in my next placement! ======

By Danielle Bernier
By: Liz MacAlpine I recently attended the recruiting fair held at the Four Points hotel in St. Catherines. The topic highlighted was how to get a job with the Hamilton Catholic School Board. The information gained would help a prospective teacher get hired by that board. This topic interested me as this school board is close to where I live. One strategy the Hamilton Catholic School Board recommended for finding a job is to get qualified to teach in all sections from Primary to Senior. They stated this would move you up the list for an interview. They also recommended getting your religion level 1 AQ course. I would use the strategies that I learned at this recruiting fair as it would improve the chance of getting hired by this school board which is a goal of mine.

**PD Day: Building Futures: The Occasional Teacher - January 13th, 2011**
At the Building Futures PD I found “The Occasional Teacher” session to be very useful and informative. The speaker Bev Kokerus provided me with ideas for creating my own toolkit, gave me potential interview questions for supply teaching, and listed several useful resources. Bev had great advice which was realistic, but positive at the same time. As an occasional teacher she mentioned the importance of three key skills: classroom management, keeping the students safe, and teaching students to their ability and interest levels. She emphasized the importance to do more than what your job requires and in time, the hard work will pay off. This session left me with a positive outlook on my teaching career and made me see hope with regards to being an occasional teacher.

**Maggie Wing Yi Yu**
 * PD Day: Building Futures: Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting in Ontario Schools - Jan. 13, 2011**



For the Building Futures Workshop, I attended the Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting in Ontario Schools session. Michael O'Gorman is a retired educator who focused on the session talking about the main purpose of assessment and evaluation is to improve student learning. He also talked about how feedback is one of the most important part of improving student learning. Teachers and students must work together by setting up learning goals and criterias so that as students, they would know that they can achieve the goals presented to them, and as teachers, they would know that their criterias are reasonable for students to achieve. A classroom teacher would use the information for instructional purposes by making sure to provide effective, positive feedback and working with students to come up with learning goals and co-create criterias that they can achieve. One reason for selecting this presentation is because I think that assessment and evaluation is one of the most important part in an educator's career that is the most difficult to do. After attending this session, I learned that in order to make sure that our students become successful, we must work with them and provide effective feedback to guide them in the right direction.

__**PD Session: TRIBES 24 Hour TLC Training - October 7, 2010; October 8, 2010; January 20, 2011.**__ __//Photo Note: The majority of us were using Tribes for this assignment, so we took a group picture rather than 20 individual pictures.//__
 * Sondra Burrows**



With Group F, I attended the //Tribes 24 Hour TLC Training// over 3 days, led by Dr. Gail Phillips. At this PD session, we learned how to create a Tribes community in our classrooms by practicing Tribes activities and establishing a Tribes community environment. As a future teacher, I will definitely utilize these strategies in my classroom. I believe in the Tribes values as an important way to create a positive, safe learning environment for students to explore, share, collaborate, and grow. To me, Tribes is not something you employ as needed, but rather is a way of living when in the classroom. I chose to post about this presentation because it has been the most meaningful and useful professional development session I have attended. It is also of immediate use since all Halton District School Board teachers must be Tribes certified, and I hope to work with this board in the near future.

-Sondra Burrows

**Angela Schram**

 * PD Session: TRIBES 24 Hour TLC Training - October 7, 2010; October 8, 2010; January 20, 2011.**



__ My Cohort Group F participated in the //Tribes 24 Hour TLC Training//, which took place over three full-day training sessions. A Tribes community seeks to create a safe and caring classroom environment where students are respectful, responsible, educated based on their uniquely different learning styles and needs, and having fun! The plethora of Tribes activities and strategies can be used to foster such as environment, as well as for instructional purposes. Many of the activities target the three learning styles, as well as Gardner’s multiple intelligences. They get students moving around, interacting and learning together, and are also easily adaptable to many of the academic subjects. Furthermore, the Tribes classroom gives way to deeper, more in depth student learning, as students are comfortable with themselves and their peers. While participating in these seminars, I saw the absolute necessity of implementing Tribes in the classroom and the school as a whole. Our students need a proactive way to connect and growth with one another in their learning. Many of the students that come into a classroom come bearing baggage. They may come from broken home and life, may be bullied, or may struggle to fit in. Tribes builds up a classroom to be a place of love and support for each student, where they do not fear coming to school, or making a mistake in front of their fellow classmates. Through Tribes this can be obtained! __

Heather B.PD Day: Tech Showcase January 28,2010 Brock University (Hamilton Campus)

I chose to post a picture from a session for which I was one of the presenters. Pictured above are: (from L to R) Antonella, Marlee, myself, and Mark - guest speaker. There were 5 of us putting on the workshop, and we had all been at the same school for block one, where we originally presented this info during a parent night concerning facebook and cyber-bulling issues. For the showcase, our presentation focused on the value and benefit of opening a school board's network to facebook, and how it could be used in the classroom. The highlight was a skype session with a gentleman named Mark, from a board in Waterloo; their board has opened up the network to allow facebook, and he is a proponent of that. Mark discussed a variety of ways in which teachers from the board have been employing facebook effectively; for example, one teacher posted a piece of art on their class facebook page, and the students were asked to visit, think critically, and comment on the work. Mark provided examples from many subject areas, and although he mentioned that they are still in a learning phase when it comes to allowing facebook, he emphasized its value in creating a class (or school//) community -// which is what we try to create among ourselves in real life anyway! For me, the showcase was informative, and also nerve-racking. We had about 15 people attend our session and they seemed to enjoy engaging in conversation with us; we planned a 4-corner activity and had participants discuss the use of technology and/or social networks in the classroom, and cyber-bulling versus traditional bullying. All in all, I think it went well, and I even had someone say "hey, nice job this morning" when I passed him in the hallway later that day - what a thrill!

Sarah Szpak **__PD Day: Building Futures: Assessment and Evaluation- January 13th, 2011__**



Assessment and Evaluation was one of the areas that I was most uncomfortable with in my first block. I chose to attend this workshop in hopes of any information that would help me for block 2. The information I received in this workshop will help me as a classroom teacher. The main point that I will remember from his presentation was that you cannot expect students to produce great results without knowing what you want from them. How can you expect to see certain things if you do not fully explain what they are? Through the clapping activity, which was the most engaging activity I have completed thus far in teachers college, I learned the basics of creating a rubric. First, what are you marking? Are the students going to be able to produce the work you want without knowing what they are being marked upon? Second, how are you going to make it fair? I learned that allowing the students to help in the process of making the rubric will help them not only succeed, but want to be more successful by having them create their own criteria. He said that the teacher needs to ensure that there is give and take, however certain criteria is non-negotiable and students need to understand that. I think this will help students respect you as a teacher more because they will see that you are trying to incorporate their ideas and thoughts, and that they are valued. I selected this presentation to share because I think that assessment and evaluation is are very scary topic for a lot of people. He made this topic approachable and fun. I think it is so scary because of the accountability to the student, parents, principle and school board. I hope to use the strategies of including students in building their rubric in all my future classrooms.

Dan Roy

**__PD Day: Building Futures: Assessment and Evaluation- January 13th, 2011__**



This was taken at the Building Futures PD. This is me and Phyllis, the presenter, for Teaching Relational Math in the classroom. We looked at different ministry standards and resources for different grades. The resources had great ideas and activities for us to use in the classroom. The biggest thing that I walked away from the seminar with was to show student where they made their error. It’s better to get them to understand their mistake then to just give them a wrong on a test. If you want students to understand through experimental learning, you need them to be able to explain their thinking. To do this you will need to understand their thinking so you can help them. That is more work for us but so much more valuable for the students. They will feel success and this will help them to build confidence.

 Brock Tech Showcase- Friday January 28, 2011 ‘Integrating 2.0 tools into classroom practise and collaborative projects’ Valerie Quinn

One of the sessions I attended was ‘Integrating 2.0 tools into classroom practise and collaborative projects’ presented by Mali Bickley and Jim Carelton (via adobe connect). This session allowed us to explore the many leaning possibilities web 2.0 tools can bring when teaching, and exposed us to several ways these tools can be integrated into a classroom. It allowed us to see firsthand how these tools have been used effectively and the many benefits it has brought to both the teacher and the students. Web 2.0 tools that were explored and included during this session were wiki spaces, adobe connect, pod casts, front row amplification system, digital story telling, voice threads and blogs. This session is very useful for all current and future teachers, for it provides teachers with knowledge, ideas and resources in how to incorporate these technological tools in a meaningful way to enhance and create a love for learning in and outside the classroom, which is also the main reason why I chose this session. We have heard so much about these web 2.0 tools and have been able to experiment with such tools in technology class and practicum that it was refreshing to see how other teachers and educators have used them successfully and the unlimited opportunities these tools have brought and created within and outside their classrooms. It also gives one all the more reason to become familiar and adapt these tools and utilize them within the classroom. This workshop provided us with variety of ways and strategies to incorporate web 2.0 tools effectively into the classroom such as using it to connect to people across the globe, a way to gather relevant information and resources on current events/issues, use it to work collaboratively together to create and present work authentically and lastly as a tool to encourage students to take academic risks. Web 2.0 tools should not be something teachers fear, or limited to a single purpose or class, but instead should be seen as a versatile strategy that should be included or at least given a chance in the classroom. It accommodates many learning needs and abilities and more importantly a fun and engaging way that encourages students to participate, collaborate and take responsibility for their learning! What more can a teacher ask for?


 * DAVID TAM - PLC ASSIGNMENT - MICHAEL O'GORMAN - BUILDING FUTURES - ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION**



The presentation I attended was concerning assessment by Michael O’Gorman. He covered a broad range of topics within assessment, from its purpose in the education system, to the practical ‘how-to’s’ of its intricacies. In general, his presentation was a breath of fresh air from the generic assessment lectures which concern themselves with the theoretical as, for and of. The presentation was engaging, fun and much more applicable. With respect to applying his information to my own classroom, obviously assessment and evaluation are necessary to the education system. However, I think his ideals concerning assessment are much more realistic to implement rather than the extremist view that Brock seems to take. Whereas we are taught that every aspect of students in school must be assessed and evaluated, O’Gorman stressed the fact that assessment and evaluation should be planned and trimmed in order to push students to achieve higher and higher goals. I definitely agree with this ideology that as educators we should pick and choose what we decide to evaluate and assess and would wholeheartedly implement his teachings in my class. The main reason I decided to attend a workshop on assessment and evaluation is because, in my opinion, it is the one aspect of schooling that garners the largest interest outside of pure educators. Parents, administration, and the general public do not see what happens in the class – rather, they only see the grades that we produce in regards to their children. If this is the only reflection they see of their children, then as teachers, we really must figure out what we’re doing in regards to this topic. It’s always good to get a second opinion, and I feel O’Gorman certainly did give a very different vibe to assessment and evaluation than I’ve learned in my years at Brock.

** Kristin B ** ** The Building Better Futures Workshop – Mathematics **



This workshop was not as useful for techniques, as resources. The presenter focused on the guides to effective instruction in Mathematics kindergarten to grade 6. These guides are sources of useful information for anyone who is required to teach math. The ministry needs to create these guides for grade 7 and 8. In Block I, I was constantly looking for alternative resources that I could add to the regular textbook. These guides, which are available online, are perfect companion resources. There is a book which corresponds to each strand of the curriculum, but there are multiple booklets for the Number Sense and Numeration strand. I plan on using these booklets in my second block, especially when I am looking for alternative ways to present an exercise. These books are truly useful for anyone teaching math, and I sincerely hope that booklets for Grade 7 and 8 will be created.

The presenter used the basic PowerPoint presentation with a projector, the actual slides made it interesting. The slides were colourful and animated.


 * Jay Stokl**

January 13th, 2011 - Building Futures: The Occasional Teacher
*

On January 13th 2011, I attended the Building futures workshop session "The Occasional Teacher" that was done by Bev Kokerus. This was an amazing session as Bev provided us with detailed information on how to be an effective occasional teacher. The topics she discussed ranged from managing a difficult classroom to making sure you are looking, smelling (no joke) and presenting yourself effectively to a principle after your school day is complete. This can be done by the use of her effective occasional teacher "tool kit" that is fully equipped to make everyone feel fresh and recharged after a long hard day of teaching. She also discussed with us how we should handle ourselves in emergency situations or what we should do if we are going to be late for a supply opportunity at a school. Remember always call ahead! Be prepared for the worst and always have the school number availablel! Bev also outlined the three key skills for any occasional teacher. These skills are 1) Classroom Management 2) Keeping the students safe at all times 3) Teaching students to their ability and interest levels. Bev was very realistic with her session and she did a great job to inform us about the importance of being available and persistent as an occasional teacher. Although it might seem like you are going way out of your way to get noticed by a principle, every little bit will help in the end! Thank you Bev for a great presentation.

//* My original photo was erased during a transfer process so I photo-shopped a new picture.//

Vanessa Yates - Building Futures: Assessment and Evaluation- January 13th, 2011



On January 13th, 2011 I attended the Building Futures Workshops. In this picture, we were attending the Assessment and Evaluation seminar, which happened to be one of the funniest and engaging presentations that I have ever attended. Assessment and Evaluation is something that I was not feeling comfortable with before this presentation. I feel that using an engaging teaching method will allow the students to learn while having fun. I learned that it is important to give students feedback, and to work together with them to come up with a marking scheme that works for both the students and the teacher. I learned that the more feedback is given, the higher the next student achieved (as they knew what the evaluators were looking for.) I feel that I learned a lot from this presentation, and that I will make sure to provide the necessary steps for each of my students to become successful.