Kyle's Modern Classroom

Updated Portfolio

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 04:54:00 +0000

I recently updated my portfolio with a new lesson plan and a revised one, plus a few other changes throughout. I posted some reflections on the role of technology in the classroom and thought they deserved to be posted in a place where a few people might read them.

The world of technology grows and changes at such a fast pace that to keep ahead of the curve requires a significant investment of time. Thankfully, we can all find a few excellent tools with just a small amount of time. These tools can significantly change many things for teachers, and not only are we lucky to have them, we have a responsibility to use them. I firmly believe that one of the roles of a teacher is to teach every student in the best way possible, and in today's world, technology is an essential part of the teaching and learning processes.

Stay tuned for an update on the future of this blog, coming after Christmas when I'm not busy being on an awesome road trip! Have a happy and safe holidays!

Wikis: Wimpy or Wonderful?

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 16:04:00 +0000

I got my first experience creating my own wiki lately (as opposed to editing one like Wikipedia). While I see some benefits to the technology, it seems to be awkwardly placed as a hybrid between a site and a wave. (Yes, I realize that Google Wave was developed with wikis in mind, but I think it has already surpassed them in convenience.) A wiki does not provide the flexibility of a website, especially the WYSIWYG editors like Google Sites, because as easy as they can be, to do the more powerful stuff takes some knowledge of wiki markup language. They are also not a great communication tool, because they seem to be centered around collaborating to create a final product. Regardless, I can still see some applications for them in the classroom: most importantly, designing a Wikipedia-like resource on a subject.

Many students could easily collaborate to design a wiki about, for example, a book. It would be easy to assign each student a chapter and have them write up a plot summary, have students work in groups on character analysis, and come together as a class for a comprehensive overview of the story.

Again, while this could be a worthwhile assignment, I think the students would be able to personalize their project far better with a website editor, and could have stronger collaboration tools through a platform like Wave or Docs. The most important part about wikis, both for teachers and students, is understanding the technology and principles because they have become an everyday part of our lives.

10 Tips: Don't touch the mouse

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 20:00:00 +0000

This has always been one of the hardest things for me from when I was young and still today in my job. So often for me it is easier to do something for a person, but this isn't the way for them to learn. I have to try every day to explain to people how to do something, not do it for them. This way, they'll learn how to do it and not depend on my and my fellow TIEs. If you do something for your colleague, it will only work until they're in the classroom without you. Do your absolute best to let your learner take control and only do something when absolutely necessary. This way, he or she can learn the most and hopefully won't need your help again.

This is the last of my 10 Tips series, but there are a lot of things to remember when teaching other teachers technology. What are some of YOUR tips? If I get some good submissions, I would be happy to continue this series and share some great ideas.

Note: This post is part of my 10 Tips for Teaching Technology to Teachers series. Check back for weekly installments.

Hearts, Keys, and Puppetry by Neil Gaiman and the Twitterverse (the Twitter Audiobook)

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 05:41:00 +0000

I promised a post updating you when the book written by Twitter was completed, and the audiobook was just recently released. BBC Audiobooks America, who organized this book, posted about it and provide free downloads here or you can download it as a free podcast in iTunes here (iTunes Link).

I haven't gotten a chance to listen to it yet, but I'm looking forward to it as soon as I have the time. Happy listening!

THE FUTURE (is now)

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 19:50:00 +0000

I sent an email to my parents and sister about these articles, then realized that you all might be interested too. Enjoy, and don't worry, they're easy reads.

This is an article about the "10 Web Trends to Watch in 2010"

http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/12/03/cashmore.web.trends.2010/index.html

And this is an excerpt from an article linked in that one about micropayments. The article focuses on Facebook, but I think people would be more comfortable with Google, because they really don't see Facebook as a professional company. (Feel free to read the whole article, but this is the important part.)

Better than Free?
A powerful argument against paid content is the abundance of Web-based media: Build a paywall around your property and readers will simply hop over to the hundreds of other news outlets publishing broadly similar news and opinion.

Niche Web publishers like myself would rub our hands with glee if Murdoch were to pursue such a strategy: It would only mean more readers and ad revenue for these smaller, more efficient outlets. Or would it?

Could there be a price point and convenience level that would make micropayments feasible? iTunes famously struck upon a $0.99 price and tight integration with the iPod to make an offer that was "better than free": a service so much simpler than braving BitTorrent sites that consumers jumped aboard.
What is the price point for journalism? Could we postulate a world in which Google indexes everything, content is largely free and the hard-to-produce stuff so cheap that we don't notice?

Anybody who keeps up with these things probably has seen a lot of this coming already, but it's still interesting to see a firm list of predictions. Then again, I don't think anybody expected Twitter and Farmville to explode this year, so these might all come true, while missing the biggest trend of 2010. We'll see!

10 Tips: Observe your colleagues

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 20:00:00 +0000

While certain technologies may be great for your classroom, every classroom and every teacher is different. If you want to be able to spread technological ideas to a variety of people, you should see a variety of classrooms. I come into my job every day with preconceived notions about certain technologies, but it's when I'm in classrooms and receiving interesting questions from teachers that I learn new things about technology and especially about how to use it in the classroom.

I would take this a step further and suggest to not only observe colleagues, but ask them to observe you. If they have comments and critiques (not just about technology), you can become a better teacher. Afterwards, have a discussion. Talk about teaching, technology, and everything else. Hopefully you can both learn something!

Note: This post is part of my 10 Tips for Teaching Technology to Teachers series. Check back for weekly installments.

10 Tips: Start with the early adopters

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:00:00 +0000

Some people, no matter how hard you try, will never adopt technology in their daily lives (though if you remember this post, you'll know that I think it's essential in classrooms today). Despite this, we also have a great advantage: people as enthusiastic about technology as us. These early adopters will be glad to hear about something new from you. From there, it will spread to the people not afraid of technology, and finally to all but the most resistant. Starting with people who don't like technology in the first place will only frustrate you and them.

Another great advantage to starting with the early adopters is that they are likely to have the strongest opinions on technology, and will give you the best feedback from a technological perspective. This is not to say that you shouldn't talk to the more resistant people - their ideas might be so different from yours that you can learn quite a bit - but the early adopters are more likely to be people who can understand some of the more technical ideas you put forth.

Note: This post is part of my 10 Tips for Teaching Technology to Teachers series. Check back for weekly installments.

More reflections on my PLN

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 16:05:00 +0000

http://www.flickr.com/photos/suewaters/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

To me, the hardest part of developing a PLN is learning to place importance on blog posts and tweets from complete strangers. I find it easy to join in a conversation with somebody I know and I know how I feel about their opinions, but with strangers it's hard to not think of it as clutter. One of my other problems is that I feel I'm generally ahead of the curve with technology. I keep up with many professional blogs and the latest technology news. Much of my PLN is people thinking about what they can do, and since so few of us are in the classroom now, we don't have many relevant experiences to share. Once my PLN is more experienced, we'll be able to have better thoughts and conversations.

Overall, I think the PLN is a valuable asset, but I feel it's something we need to let develop organically. I have put a lot of effort into my PLN, but the strongest parts are still what I had before or what developed on its own.

10 Tips: Acknowledge your teachers' anxiety and expertise

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 20:00:00 +0000

This is another tip I've come to particularly appreciate at work. Certain professors get very frustrated when something doesn't come naturally to them. Be gently encouraging, and remind them that many things don't come naturally to their own students.

When a professor is saying how dumb or slow he/she is, I make a joke, blame the technology, or change the subject. My hope isn't to give them a bad feeling for the technology or make light of the situation, but to relieve the stress and refresh their view. Likely, a few minutes down the line the professor will be able to get the technology working and hopefully will remember that knowledge for next time. Just make sure to not brag or seem aloof; there are a lot of things you can't do either.

Note: This post is part of my 10 Tips for Teaching Technology to Teachers series. Check back for weekly installments.

Live Translation - Tearing Down Communication Barriers

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 23:18:00 +0000

While Google has always been my preferred online translator, they announced a host of new features and a completely new interface for translation on Monday. Among these features, and first hinted at when Wave was introduced back in May, is the advent of live translation.

As you type any language into the new translation box Google will automatically detect what language you're typing and translate it character by character into any language of your choice. It's very interesting to see the root of a foreign word translated to English, then the final result.

The new Translate also features the ability to Romanize, or display in Roman characters, any language that uses non-Roman symbols. Lastly, if you're typing in a language such as Arabic on an American or other Roman keyboard, you can type phonetically and Google will transliterate your input into the appropriate characters and language.

This new Translate has two great applications that instantly come to mind for me.

1. Enabling students, teachers, and parents to communicate across the language barrier

Whether you're a teacher that wants to foster international communication between your students and those from classrooms in other countries, or you just want to communicate with parents who don't have a complete grip on the English language, this is a great tool. If this is integrated into chat or email it really empowers these teachers. Even better, if it is integrated into Wave, it enables practically live communication between people speaking any language.

2. The ability to teach foreign language lessons

Whether from seeing how words change as they're structured or seeing how sentences change in context, this tool can help students learn a lot about translation. One of the most important things for students to note is that the tool is not always correct. Whether it's due to a literal translation that is inaccurate or just an out-of-date way of saying something, the tool will often give a translation that, while factually correct, would not be used in the current understanding of the language. This is a great tool to augment current knowledge and learn a few new things.

While this tool is certainly the new standard for online translation, hopefully Google will continue working to improve it. An extremely powerful and instant translation tool could be one of the final steps in fostering communication between any person worldwide.

Keeping Up With Current Events

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 17:17:00 +0000

Throughout our entire school career, teachers have encouraged us to keep up with current events. While we formerly paged through newspapers and clipped articles, fewer people get newspapers every day and this technique seems dated. A great tool for teaching students about current events is Google News. News also helps students go beyond just finding one or two articles a week and will hopefully encourage them to independently keep up with news and grow up to be informed citizens.

One of the greatest ways that Google News can keep students engaged is a customizable news page. While most teachers will want their students to see US and World News, this is available on most any news site. Google can incorporate these sections along with local news and sections devoted to certain students' interests. Some students will be fascinated with entertainment news, others sports stats and scores, and some (like me) the latest technology updates. These topics of more specific interest will hopefully keep students more engaged.

Google News also makes it easy to make very specific custom sections that can be added or deleted at any time. This is great for geography classrooms - students can add a section for the world region they're studying in class and get regular updates about the topics that are relevant to them.

Legal issues aside (and there are many), Google News is a great tool for students and educators alike, and deserves an important spot in the classroom.

College of Education Tech Conference

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:17:00 +0000

This is just a reminder that the MSU College of Education Tech Conference is this Saturday. Registration is available now and at the door and more details can be found here.

I'll be presenting the workshop on Google Tools for Educators, including lots of details on some of the things I've mentioned here and so much more! I know at least one person from CEP 416 is signed up for my workshop, but all of you can check out the site we're working on. Our workshop will mostly run from this site, but it will hopefully continue to be a useful resource after the workshop and for those who can't make it. Visit it at:
http://sites.google.com/site/msucoetechconfgoogapps/

It's a tricky URL to remember, but will hopefully be easy to find on Google in a few days. Please explore the site and feel free to comment here or there and ask questions. Hopefully I'll see you this weekend!

10 Tips: Remember there is great teaching without technology

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 20:00:00 +0000

This is something I've made sure to cover in this blog and should not be forgotten. The best way to do something can be paper and pencil or talking it out. Technology is not the be-all, end-all of teaching, and if we rely on technology to make our lessons great, we won't get anywhere.

Most importantly, we should defer to our colleagues who, while possibly technologically behind us, have more experience and know just what they're doing. If they have a method to teach something that's worked for 20 years, we should probably trust it. Just because your idea is more modern doesn't mean it's better. Ideally, of course, you can work with an experienced colleague to adopt a great method and use technology to make it even better, but don't just assume.

Like many of these tips, this is something to keep in mind to yourself and to spread to the people you teach technology.

Note: This post is part of my 10 Tips for Teaching Technology to Teachers series. Check back for weekly installments.

VoiceThread Revisited

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 02:14:00 +0000

A few weeks ago I decided that while VoiceThread was a well-designed tool, I didn't see a lot of use for it in my classroom. It didn't seem to intuitively fit into the class and felt awkwardly between an article and a video. A few days later I ran into this article on a blog I read, and it included this presentation:

This really expanded my opinion of VoiceThread. While I still don't like some of the uses I initially saw for it, I can really see it as a collaborative tool now. The content is not the focus, but just something to start a conversation. My favorite suggestion in the presentation is to use VoiceThread to tell a story. This sounds like a great way to do collaborative digital storytelling. I think my mistake was looking at VoiceThread as a finished product, not something that's always changing.

Telling a Story Before It Happens?

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:12:00 +0000

Digital storytelling didn't seem much like my thing, but I could see applications for it in the classroom. When looking at various ways to tell a story, I saw something that sparked my interest. My sister and I are planning a road trip from California (where she currently works) to Michigan (she's moving back home). We've been doing lots of planning (and collaborating with all sorts of great tech tools), but one of the things I want to be able to do is share our trip with people. When I saw the suggestion of using Google Maps, I realized I already had a map I could turn into a story. I went to the Google Site I had started to build about our trip, and combined everything together. Right now, it's just about the planning, but when we're on the trip I'll be able to keep everybody posted and have a digital scrapbook when it's done. Turns out digital storytelling is pretty fun.

Please, visit the site and take a look around. If anybody has done a trip like this before, we'd love some input to make this a great story.

The first teaching application that comes to mind is building off my lesson plan from last week. Students can take the stories that they're already writing and make them so much more dynamic. They can add pictures, videos, and any other kind of media. The best part of this is it serves to make them even more interested in writing. While I really enjoyed using Google Maps, I think one of the strengths is the great variety of programs available. Students should be able to choose whatever works best for them and make something that they care about the most.

10 Tips: Enlist your PLN

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 20:00:00 +0000

We spent so much time learning how to build a PLN, it would be a huge shame to not use it. I think a ot of what we do with our PLN is passive. We put something out, perhaps respond, but we don't really dive in and interact. Trouble with a new technology is the perfect time to do this. Don't just share an article or your thoughts, ask a question. If you're not getting responses, make sure you're not just blogging or tweeting, but actually going to the people in your PLN and asking them directly.

Of course, this isn't only when you're having trouble, but when you just want ideas. Our biggest waste of our PLNs is waiting for them to show us things, not pursuing ideas or querying them for ideas and input. Don't forget your PLN is always there, and make sure you're an active participant when other people want input and ideas so they know you're always there.

Note: This post is part of my 10 Tips for Teaching Technology to Teachers series. Check back for weekly installments.

Storytelling on Twitter

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:56:00 +0000

I can't do my usual analysis in this post, because I just want to share a really cool idea I recently discovered. Well-known author Neil Gaiman recently tried a new thing: storytelling on Twitter. You can read the full story here, but the general idea is that he posted the first sentence and asked all of his followers to continue the story. The best lines are being put together into one story and will be recorded as an audiobook. You can see some of the story here, but I'm waiting for the whole thing to be released.

This idea, aside from being very fun, is a great model for the sort of thing we can use technology for in the classroom. Our students can collaborate using great tools like Twitter, blogging, Google Docs, etc. and create class projects during the schoolday or anytime at home. The classroom is wherever the students have access to a computer, and hopefully with projects like this they can get involved and passionate.

Lesson Plan

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 02:28:00 +0000

My portfolio has a new lesson plan here that I think is something I could realistically use in my classroom. I'd love for anybody to check it out and give me some feedback.

The hardest part about this was that I have never written a lesson plan. The only TE classes I've taken so far are 150 (psychology) and 250 (diversity). I feel like I'm flying blind here. I think I could have done this a lot better if I knew exactly what went into a lesson plan. Hopefully when I actually learn these things I'll be able to go back and revise this. I hope that my portfolio will be useful in the future, not just for CEP 416, so I'll be able to edit, add to, and revise it in the coming semesters and years.

Check Out my Portfolio

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 13:01:00 +0000

Maybe you've seen it before, but I recently updated my portfolio with my resume, a sample lesson plan, and a few other smaller things. Look around and tell me what you think!

sites.google.com/site/kylesmodernclassroom

10 Tips: Ask lots of questions

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:00:00 +0000

This tip is for your students and for yourself. When you find a new technology, learn as much as you can about it. Then, ask yourself how you can apply it in the classroom, how you can teach it to other people, and what it's best and worst parts are. From here, you'll know your opinion and be ready for other people to ask you the same questions.

From then, encourage the people you're sharing with to ask lots of questions. These shouldn't just be questions about what they don't understand, but what they feel about a technology. This is a great way to foster discussion, challenge your own ideas, and reach some great new ideas together.

Lastly, when you're teaching them, use the Socratic method. In other words, don't just tell them things, ask them questions. While you obviously have to cover the basics with simple instruction, if you ask your students about what they think or how they might use something, it will help them arrive at the conclusions themselves (far more rewarding and memorable) and might provide you some answers you didn't think of before.

Note: This post is part of my 10 Tips for Teaching Technology to Teachers series. Check back for weekly installments.

Developing my Personal Learning Network

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:08:00 +0000

write a blog post about developing a Personal Learning network so far. What potential does it have? What are some of the practical or other limitations or problems in trying to develop and/or maintain a PLN?

I find that the hardest part of developing a Personal Learning Network online is developing a trusting and meaningful relationship with people I don't know on any personal level and have never physically met. It's difficult for me to view these faceless blogs and Twitter accounts as people, as opposed to just another news source. I've certainly learned some things and found interesting links from my PLN, but I don't feel like I've gotten to the point where I would turn to them for advice or help.

I'm doing my best to ask for input in this blog to develop stronger connections with my PLN, but people are busy and giving feedback on ideas to a stranger isn't usually what they want to spend their time doing. While this is a technology class and we can physically do all that's required just online, this is the one aspect that's hard to develop online. Hopefully, with experience, I'll learn to trust my PLN and take full advantage of it.

In the full spirit of participation: what are your feelings on a PLN? I'll try to do my best to comment on the other blogs I read this week.

Halloween Presentation - Now with VoiceThread!

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 21:31:00 +0000

While Google Docs has great tools to collaboratively build a presentation, the only way to comment on one is text chat. VoiceThread introduces audio commenting online or by phone (or uploading files, if you pay) and video commenting from a webcam in addition to text commenting.

As useful as these tools can be, I don't find VoiceThread to be particularly amazing. It seems to be an odd hybrid between a video and a presentation. Long audio comments are boring (you just stare at one picture) and might be better delivered in podcast form. I don't personally like to sit at a computer to listen to or watch other people's thoughts. I'd much rather read them at my own pace. Perhaps I'm missing something (and please enlighten me, if so) but I find VoiceThread to be more bothersome than anything else, and an excuse to ramble about pictures when something could be presented far more efficiently.

For the origins of this presentation, see:
History of Halloween - a Beyond Bullet Points Presentation

History of Halloween - a Beyond Bullet Points Presentation

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:43:00 +0000

In creating this presentation, I made sure to incorporate images and a consistent theme. None of the slides should be overwhelming, but there is a reasonable amount of important information on each slide. If I were to present it to a class, I could add talk about each slide to a greater extent, but the most important information is on the slide. Hopefully this presentation would not overwhelm students, but would also engage them. Tell me what you think!

For a follow-up to this post, see:
Halloween Presentation - Now with VoiceThread!

10 Tips: Don't be the only teacher

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 19:00:00 +0000

We should all realize that learning is a collaborative effort. We do group activities all the time in our classes, so why shouldn't we encourage working together when learning a skill on the job?

I think some of the greatest teachers to teachers are the students. I make it a point to mention in every job interview that part of my teaching philosophy is to never stop learning and to try to learn as much from my students as they learn from me. I certainly taught quite a few teachers about technology when I was younger, and I'm sure there will be a day when I have some students who are using the latest website that I've never even heard of. While many of us in CEP 416 will have technological knowledge, this is a great message to spread to your colleagues. Don't be afraid to learn from your students; if anything, it will just encourage them to respect you more and learn more from you.

Note: This post is part of my 10 Tips for Teaching Technology to Teachers series. Check back for weekly installments.

Broadband as a Legal Right?

noreply@blogger.com (Kyle Maddens) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 02:20:00 +0000

One of my favorite tech blogs, Mashable, recently posted this article about how Finland recently made broadband internet a legal right. The Finnish government has decided that citizens cannot reasonably live in the modern world without a fast and reliable internet connection. I think this really speaks to our modern world and is something that all teachers should think about. If we think that people can barely live without internet, how can anybody possibly think of teaching without using it everyday?

A classroom that doesn't use the latest technology available is not only missing out on opportunities, it is limiting the students. If students don't learn to use these things in the school, they might not get a chance to learn about them until they're already behind their peers.

Do you think broadband internet should be a legal right?