Technology Tools for 21st Century Teaching Beyond the Basics

Technology Tools for 21st Century Teaching

Material Generator

        “Material generators, help teachers and students produce instructional material on paper and online” (Roblyer, M.D. 2016, p. 141). These programs allows teachers access to a fast easier way to produce classroom material for students. These programs also allow teachers the versatility to produce paper copies as well as digital copies of class material. There are several programs that can be used to help create material such as: PDF Form Maker software and Social Studies Puzzle Maker

Data Collection Analysis tools

         “Data collection and analysis tools make it easier to collect and process data to provide feedback and support decision making”  (Roblyer, M.D. 2016, p. 142). Examples of this software include programs such as Survey Monkey and  Google sheets. This software would be essential for teachers to make data collecting faster and easier.

Testing and grading tools

            Gradebooks, rubric generators, tests, and computer-based testing systems are all examples of testing and grading tools. “Testing and grading tools allow collection and tracking of assessment information to measure students process” (Roblyer, M.D. 2016, p. 142).. Examples of testing and grading tools would be programs such as google classroom and sycamore students. These programs allow teachers a way to have a digital gradebook and rubrics for grading.  This technology allows the grades to be instantaneous. This allows students and parents to log in and have access to grades as they're uploaded.   

Graphic Tools

           Draw/paint programs, image editing software, charting and graphing tools, media collections, and word cloud generators are all examples of graphic tools. . “Graphic tools allow for the manipulation of images to illustrate documents and web pages” (Roblyer, M.D. 2016, p. 141). Two examples of this software are imaging editing. Another example is charting and graphing tools. This add-on allows the teacher to effectively illustrate material in chart form.

Planning and organizing tools

           Outlining and concept-mapping software, lesson planning software, calendars, as well as time-management tools are examples of planning and organization tools. “This helps the teacher and student conceptualize, organize, and communicate their ideas” (Roblyer, M. D. 2016, p. 141). This software helps teachers as well as students to manage time and organize scheduled events. Programs such as  Google Calendars and Google Lesson Planners to aide in time-management.  

Research and reference tools

           Research and reference tools will aid students in research as well as writing a paper. “Research and reference tools help students research on assigned topics; assist with using correct spelling and word use” (Roblyer, M.D. 2016, p. 141). Examples of research and and reference tools that can be used by students consist of an online thesaurus and mapping tools

 

Content area tool

           Content area tools can be used in a variety of different subjects. These tools are universal which can be used by several different types of teachers in conjunction with several different teaching styles.. “Content-area tools support task specific to content areas such as technology education, music, science, math, social studies, and foreign languages” (Roblyer, M.D. 2016, p. 142). Examples of these programs would consist of reading tools and CAD systems.  

Roblyer, M.D. (2016). Integrating educational technology into teaching (7th ed). Boston, MA; Pearson

Don't be fooled with bad websites

Search Engines:

        Search engines can be so useful to find and access information. Search engines are used by millions of people on a daily basis. "Two commonly cited types of search engines are: major search engines and metacrawlers- these programs use more than one search engine at the same time to locate things" (Roblyer, 2016, p. 183). Teaching students to use search engines is important, using the correct search engine will save the student time. This will allow the student to find more credible information that will help on his/her project. Search engines allow for keyword searches that allow the engine to search millions of documents simultaneously. "Just type in the search word or phrase, and the search engine displays a list of websites whose URLs contain the word or phrase" (Roblyer, 2016, p. 183).

Website Evaluation Video:

"The Internet's vast information storehouse, unfortunately, contains some information that is incomplete, inaccurate, and/or out of date" (Roblyer, 2016, p. 199). I think this video is a very easy way to explain website evaluation to students. Although the acronyms are different I think this video is a simple way to explain website evaluation. Videos in a cartoon form allow students to be more comfortable and learn the material. This video after changing the Acronyms from C.R.A.A.P. to R.E.A.L. would be very effective, it gets the message across in a way that students will relate to and understand. I would definitely use a video of this nature before a project assignment to ensure "Users evaluate a Web page by the usefulness and reliability and the quality of its design" (Roblyer, 2016, p. 199).

Website # 1:

http://millercenter.org/

For my first website I chose the Miller Center, The Miller Center is a website that I evaluated with the criteria in our text authorship, content, organization and navigation, visual design, media. The author or contributor to the website is the University of Virginia, it is also a .gov website as well. The content of the site is mainly about the past and current Presidents of the United States. The organization and navigation is very easy to use. The visual design is great for the student to know what the content is about. The media involved with this site consist of this like speeches that a president gave.

Website # 2:

https://www.loc.gov/

    For my second website is the Library of Congress, the Library of Congress is a website that also fits the criteria from our text. When looking at the author I have found that the publisher is the Library of Congress, this is a credible source to do research from. This websites content, organization and navigation, visual design, and media content are all very well placed and chosen to ensure the site runs smoothly and accurately.  This website is a good site to pull historical content from equipped with teacher resources and lesson plans.

Online Safety and Security:

      This topic is very important when dealing with our students, the amount of pornographic material that is accessible is astonishing. To combat that issue school districts will need the use of firewalls which “protects a computer from attempts by others to unauthorized gain access to it, and also prevents access to certain sites (Roblyer, 2016, p. 174).

Resources:

Roblyer M.D. (2016). Integrating technology into teaching (7th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.