Blog article 7

Differentiated Instruction: Getting Personal with Technology 

     Using technology in the classroom, students are able to reading books, practice math skills, create videos with a flip cam, contribute to a classroom blog, produce PowerPoints and also use an interactive whiteboard. From one of the interviews in this article talk teacher talks about how one of his students he sees as a disinterested student in reading and writing. This student used a comic life software to make a cartoon about a reptile he calls a bearded dragon, just like the one he has at home. The teacher was very pleased that this students was elected to work on creating comics, where good writing is essential and every word counts. His teacher says if he would have given this student a traditional project he would have been dooming him to be a C or D student. Using this software and allowing the student to do something he enjoys allows him to be better than just a C student. His teacher said "what's neat is that you don't see the disabilities, you see the abilities."  

   How to Differentiate: For starts, you can use software to do much of the basic-skills practice and assassessment that would otherwise take up the teacher's time. The computer programs can identify spectific weaknesses in a child's skills. Teachers can review these outcomes daily, then assign lessons to each student according to their need, so the next time they log in, the program  will give them practice assignments on precisely what they need. 

Reflection 6

     An article I have recently read was about teachers and students getting too social online. This article had some really important information in it about being friends with your students on social media. I am definitely in between the ideas of having or not having students as friends on a social media.
     This article also shares information that was given in a couple interviews about using or not using social media. In some districts I across the country, schools are imposing new guidelines that ban private conversations between teachers and their students on social media. So some teachers do not even have the option to be friends with their students.
     In one of the interviews that was given, this teacher said something that stood out to me, "I think one of the reasons why I use social media is the same reason why everyone else uses it, it works. I think that we would do more good keeping kids safe by teaching them how to use these tools and navigate this online world rather thank looking it down and pretending that it is not in our realm." This statement stuck out to me because most of the incidents that happened could have been preventable if the students or even the teachers were taught the correct way to use the technology.

Blog Article 6

Rules to Stop Pupil and Teacher From Getting Too Social Online 

Schools across the country are imposing strict new guidelines that ban private conversations between teachers and their students on cellphones and other online platforms like facebook and Twitter. These polices starting coming up when some teachers were seen setting poor examples; posting lurid comments or photographs and having inappropriate conversations. School administrators know that the vast majority of teach use social media appropriately. Some school districts have completely banned their teachers from having any kind of social media but some have not. One teacher says "I am against baning it entirely. But I think there is a middle ground that would allow teachers to take advantage of the electronics technology and keep kids safe." Another teacher says, "I think that we would do more good keeping kids safe by teaching them how to use these tools and navigate this online world rather than locking it down and pretending that it is not in our Realm." School administrators are also concerned that teachers may reveal too much information about their private lives. "Keep work work, and keep private your personal life." "For a relationship to start with friending or texting seems to be heading down the wrong oath professionally."