As a high school Math teacher, I believe that my students will like the idea of Blogs to do some activities or assignments, and there will be a possibility for enhancing the student’s learning process using this technology in the classroom. I also believe that it will be easier for me to teach my students how to use blogs than it will be for a teacher of younger students, because kids in the high school these days know a lot about the new technologies, even more than their teachers.
I teach Algebra I for ninth graders, and AP Calculus for twelfth graders, and I found some ideas on how blogs could be used in my classroom such as:
1. To post communicating topics especially during long breaks. I found after the Christmas break that many of my students have forgotten much of what they already have learned, and I thought at the time that if we had some sort of communication, I would have posted reviewing assignment to refresh their memories.
2. To post links to web pages where they can do practice problems online that can help strengthen their skills.
3. To post projects or extra credit work, and let them communicate to share ideas and information.
4. To post summaries and assignments for students who were absent to school.
I feel that I am ready to apply these ideas in my classroom, but I am facing one problem that the majority of the students in my school do not have computers or internet access at home. They use the computers before/after school day or they use them at the public library. I think that this problem could create a disadvantage situation for those students. I am looking forward to hearing your suggestions on how to overcome this problem.
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Joseph,
ReplyDeleteI think your idea to post assignments to the class blog for students who are absent is a great idea and would cut down on paperwork. However, like the traditional system of keeping missed work in a folder for students to pick up upon their return, many students would probably not assert responsibility in retrieving those missed tasks. Furthermore, they potentially could use the fact that they have limited Internet access as an excuse to become unaccountable for the missed work. I think you would still have to provide hard copies to absent students to be fair.
Your ideas for using blogs in the classroom are similar to ones that I use. Although my Algebra I Honors students have individual accounts to access homework help, tutorials, and interactive practice through the textbook publisher, they are not taking full advantage of it. They are online every night using MySpace, email, or instant messaging, so it's not from lack of access.
ReplyDeleteSince one of my responsibilities is to prepare them for high school, I am constantly reminding them that "I wasn't here" and "I left early" are not acceptable reasons for missing homework assignments. As the second semester begins, I will be adding blog participation to their required assignments. Once they experience the full advantage of cooperative, virtual learning, I am hoping that they will voluntarily increase their use of these tools.
Among my traditional 8th grade Math students, home computers with internet access are not as common. April made a good point when she stated that students may use this limited access as an excuse for not completing assignments. For these students, I would schedule time for them to use the computers in my classroom. My students are allowed to use them before homeroom, during lunch, or during my planning period. If they are not bus riders, they may also use them after school. In addition, if they finish a test or classroom assignment early, they may also use the computers during Math class. I also schedule time in the computer lab as often as I can. Instead of just telling my Algebra students to create an online account for homework help, we set them up as a class in the computer lab. I knew that if I had left it up to them, they would have found all sorts of excuses not to do it.
In a perfect world, all students would have computers with high-speed internet access at home. Unfortunately, we are not living in a perfect world. As school budgets are continually cut, it becomes harder to provide the technology access that our students need. For that reason, we have to be very creative in finding ways to hurdle the financial roadblocks.
Joe,
ReplyDeleteYour ideas about communication between students and even parents are great. April and Susanna made good points about not all students being responsible enough or having internet access. However, my experience has been that most students will stay after school, go to the public library, or even the school media center to do an "internet" assignment. If you can get your students excited about your blog I think they will be excited too.