Research ShowCase Post

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9n0L-nn3aB0

Wiki Reflection Blog

What was my contribution? What I contributed to the Wiki was by adding my portion of the assignment that was required.  At first I really did not know what a wiki was, therefore I went to the website: http://wiki.org/wiki.cgi?WhatIsWiki, from my findings, Wiki is a piece of server software that allows users to freely create and edit Web page content using any Web browser. Wiki supports hyperlinks and has simple text syntax for creating new pages and crosslink’s between internal pages on the fly. Wiki is unusual among group communication mechanisms in that it allows the organization of contributions to be edited in addition to the content itself. How did working on the wiki contribute to or to hinder my learning or knowledge development? Working on the wiki, explained my knowledge about websites and on how group communication to edit the content itself. In the Wiki, I was a part of the creation of the content, where I was able to change and create new pages in the wiki.  How did working on the wiki contribute to or to hinder my attitude toward the subject matter? Working on the wiki, broaden my knowledge of design, crating and editing on the Wiki. The first page, which is the front page, was very odd, looking at it, therefore, as the journey of learning resumed, it became of interest and I want to learn more about the wiki. How did working on the wiki contribute to or hinder my ability to perform in my future career (i.e. skill development)? From working on the wiki, gives me much interest as become future students. I will allow my students to us the wiki itself to create pages and join in communications with other groups. How did working on the wiki contribute or hinder my sense of reciprocity and cooperation among students in my class? At this time, I am not currently a teacher, but I really believe it will be very beneficial to my future students.

References

Wiki (2002). WhatIsWiki. Retrieved August 04, 2013, from http://wiki.org/wiki.cgi?

 

 

 

Muddiest Point

Muddiest Point

On reviewing the video by Dr. David Brown, was at a point came very unclear to me. He stated about Metadata, became very unclear to me. He stated that when you are using Microsoft when doing your discussion boards, that information can be tracked.  This information became of interest and also, it was very confusion to me. Dr. Brown said it was possible to limit the amount of data and how to personally track the information that you are using. The direction of how to go to this information was clear.  Also, the video was very good, but was skipping at one point, which caused the information to become choppy.

However, when doing my interview, one of the questions I asked the interviewer is about ethic in technology even in the classroom, such as plagiarism and even identity theft and respect on the computer itself. Even Dr. Brown stated about plagiarism. Students are held accountable for the wrongful act of plagiarism, by using software such as: Turnitin, and Safeassign to name a few to track plagiarism.

Blessings

Eric

Reference

Brown, D. (Performer) (2012). Presentation: Ask the expert- dr. david brown [Web]. Retrieved

from
      http://bb7.liberty.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=/webapps/black
      board/execute/launcher?type=Course&id=_1980527_1&url=

 

Most Important "Theory" Blog

Spiro et al (1999) writes that Cognitive flexibility theory is a learning theory that enables teachers to promote the use of educational technologies in the learning process as well as allowing students to delve deeper into the complexities associated with the middle school curriculum. Learning theories shape how teachers design educational environments for their students. For example, constructivist learning theories encourage lessons that allow students to relate new information to prior knowledge, recognize the complexity of concepts, and create new knowledge structures. However, content is often presented in a relatively simplistic manner and the depth of knowledge inherent in the intended learning objectives is not recognized nor understood by students. The importance of the Cognitive flexibility learning theory, is that it builds on constructivism and work done in media and learning interaction, can assist teachers in structuring activities that avoid oversimplification of complex concepts (Spiro et al 1999).

This theory did not change your views or ideas about educational technology or distance education research, due to the fact Cognitive flexibility is a learning theory that “focuses on the nature of learning in complex and ill-structured domains” (Kearsley, 2000) and separates itself from many theories because it deals with the acquisition of advanced knowledge. Therefore I would use this theory in future research, due to Spiro (1999) state, that cognitive flexibility, is the ability to spontaneously restructure one’s knowledge, in many ways, in adaptive response to radically changing situational demands… this is a function of both the way knowledge is represented (e.g., along multiple rather than conceptual dimensions) and the processes that operate on those mental representations (e.g., processes of schema assembly rather than intact (schema retrieval) (p. 165). When teaching varies lesson, you are structuring that person way of thinking, especially teaching Math. In Math class many students learning to solve math problems, and is concreted with one method, however, there are other methods that can be used. By using cognitive flexibility theory, can restructure the students’ way of thinking of how to use other methods of solving Math problems.

 

Reference(s)

Spiro, R.J., Feltovich, P.J., Jacobson, M.L., & Coulson, R.L. (1999).Cognitive flexibility,     

     constructivism, and hypertext: Random access instruction for advanced knowledge

     acquisition in ill-structureddomains. [On-line]. Available:

     http://www.ilt.columbia.edu/ilt/papers/Spiro.html

Kearsley, G. (2000). Cognitive flexibility theory. [On-line]. Available:

     http://www.gwu.edu/~tip/spiro.html

EDU 639 - Most Important Point Blog

According to my interview the important issue that I discovered in educational technology is funding. Due to funding education is not receiving the full funding that is very much needed for the advancement of technology and its students. As a result, many states have made many cuts to education funding since the start of the recession and, in many states those cuts will even deepened. Also, due to little funding many computers and software is not up to date and need to be updated even varies labs that the computers are in. With little fund, many schools try to keep much of the software and computers up to date.

During the interview it was stated because states rely heavily on spending, reductions in response to the recession, rather than on a more balanced mix of spending cuts and revenue increases, funding for schools and other public services fell sharply. Because funds are so important to educational technology, many students will not be able to learn the necessary skills for technology as of today. Even so, this will even cause teacher shortages, due to funding. Addition, when doing this interview funding gave me a different view about educational technology, but I am very sure, up the road head things will change, because our future professors are important.  

EDU 639- Social Networking

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PR3DehZmizU

Best Practices Blog

Krathwohl, (1998) writes that rapid developments in technology are leading many teachers and students to experiment with distance education. Best Practices are meant to assist schools in planning distance education activities regarding the electronically offered courses, and to provide a self-assessment framework for those already involved. For the accrediting agencies they constitute a common understanding of those elements which reflect quality of technologically mediated instruction offered at a distance. As such they are intended to inform and facilitate the evaluation policies and processes of each agency.  

Best Practices have been developed by the NCPSA Commission on Technology and Distance Education, in cooperation with CITA, in response to the emergence of technologically mediated instruction offered at a distance as an important and growing component of K-12 education. Expressing in detail what currently constitutes best practice in distance education, specifically electronically offered courses, they seek to address concerns that regional accreditation standards are not relevant to the new distributed learning environments, especially when those environments are experienced by off-campus students.

The Best Practices, however, are not new evaluative criteria. Rather they explicate how the well-established essentials of school quality found in regional accreditation standards are applicable to the emergent forms of learning; much of the detail of their content would find application in any learning environment. Taken together those essentials reflect the values which the accrediting agencies foster among their affiliated schools.

The U.S. Department of Education, 2004) support the continued expansion of distance learning opportunities aimed at elementary- and secondary-school students. As pressure on decision-makers to implement distance learning opportunities for K–12 students continues to grow, so do questions concerning the effectiveness and scalability of existing programs, and the costs, needs, and barriers in creating new programs (Freedman, Darrow,& Watson, 2002).

 

 

Reference:

Blackmar, L (1998) Best Practices For Distance Education in K-12 Schools

http://www.ncpsa.org/client_data/files/2011/57_bestpracticesfinalrevisedinteractive.pdf

Freedman, G., Darrow, R., & Watson, J., (2002). The California virtual school report: A national    

survey of virtual education practice and policy with recommendations for the state of
California. Santa Cruz, CA: University of California.

 

Krathwohl, D. R. (1998). Methods of educational and social science research: An integrated

approach. Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press.

U.S. Department of Education. (2004). Toward a new golden age in American education: How

the internet, the law and today’s students are revolutionizing expectations. Washington DC:
National Educational Technology Plan 2004.