Integrating Educational Technologies

Integrating Educational Technologies into Your Classrooms

 

There is no denying that students today don’t know what it is to grow up without immediate access to information and the internet. This generation has literally been connected since birth. It has come to a point where the debate is about teaching kids to balance their digital and face to face lives. Educators have to use technology in order to teach kids how to do so responsibly and productively. But it is not only about the technology. It’s about teaching how to build healthy relationships, to think and work like scientists and engineers and how to use the tools available to us and separate good tools and news from bad ones. Utilizing the power of educational technologies in science teaching has become more vital with each passing year, from smartphones to digital fabrication tools such as 3D printers and laser cutters.

      One of the leaders in the field of integrating technology into education is Dr. Cristiana Assumpção, co-founder of the online Earth2Class Workshops for Teachers, and Educational Technology  and STEAM Consultant. Dr. Assumpção earned her doctorate from Teachers College, Columbia University, in Instructional Technology and Media (2002.) Below on this page, she shares some of the information she uses in her teacher enhancement programs offered through her services for the last 23 years at a private school in Brazil, and now as an independent researcher and consultant in the USA.

Note: Many of the following links are hosted on external websites and may have been altered or closed by the creators. Please notify us if you find this to be the case–michael@earth2class.org.

     Each E2C session provides an opportunity for teachers to explore different aspects of educational technology, and then share what they do with others. Here are links to samples:


Suggestions from  Cristiana Assumpção:

NMC (New Media Consortium) Emerging Leaders (older links)
Austin, TX (2013) Conference YouTube presentation

    Tips on How to Manage Collaborative Group Work in the Classroom 

    Using Digital Cameras in the Classroom  (still applicable in part, now thinking of smartphones)

See also Cristiana’s presentation in the E2C em Brasil section (in Portuguese).

STEM and STEAM (2018)/h3

The use of technology is only as powerful as the pedagogical strategies that use them. So when we think about educational technology, we have to think first about our teaching goals/ objectives. The first thing the teachers have to put in the lesson plan is where they want their student to go, and how they will know if the student has arrived. We call these the objectives and assessment tools. After we answer these two questions (“Where do I want to go? How do I know if I got there?”), we now plan the road that will take them there. We think about strategies, materials and technologies.

In the last years there has been a visible growth in the Maker Movement, both in the USA and in other countries. When educational technology and science met the maker community, the discussions on STEM and STEAM curriculum increased. Using the power of investigative science as described in the NGSS (Next Generation Science Standards), a hands-on experimental approach and technology, you can create amazing curricular activities that will engage the students and promote higher level thinking skills.

Here are some resources to get started on thinking about STEM / STEAM in your classroom. As a science teacher for 30 years, I personally found it a much richer experience to incorporate the Arts as a partner for making better science by bringing in a human approach that values significance, design and aesthetics, all important aspects that contribute to beauty and the quality of life. Science could not ask for a better partner.

Resources:

 

  • Recommended reading:

   Resultado de imagem  Resultado de imagem  Resultado de imagem  Resultado de imagem  Resultado de imagem

Resultado de imagem   Resultado de imagem      Makers by anderson bookcover.jpg   Resultado de imagem para wired magazine makerspaces

 

Suggestions from other teachers who participate in the E2C workshops:


Using “GeoMapApp and Google Earth” (with Andrew Goodwillie and Steve Kluge)     

            GeoMapApp Learning Activities

            Earth View from GoogleMaps

     Suggestions for using Google Earth — Steve Kluge  

           Viewing Google Earth Files

          DLESE NY Landscape Regions in Google Earth

          About the DLESE NY Landscape Regions In Google Earth Project

 

 Using the Global Climate Change Project (with Mark Becker)                   

            Climate Change Human Health

            

Using Graphic Novels in Your Curriculum (with Carl Brenner)                   

            Tales of the Resolution

            Lesson Plans to Integrate the NGSS and Common Core Reading and Writing with Graphic Novels

Using Apps

           “Useful Apps and Technology for the Classroom” from Techahead (suggested by Madison Loomis)

          Suggestions from ES educators

Using Online Models and Data

          High Adventure Science

Using Blogs
“Earth Learning Ideas”
           “Written in Stone … Seen through my Lens”

Using Ipads

Using Online Images

Using Movies Effectively in Your Classroom

            Using Social Media for Your Curriculum

            Using Featured Films with Your Class

               Selected Geoscience YouTube Videos

               Goescience Videos from North Carolina State University

 

Using GPS in Your Curriculum   

Electronic Teacher-Student Communication Strategies

    Using Online Interactive Strategies

    Free Technology for Teachers


Prezi 

     What’s a Prezi?

     Size and Scale in the Universe — Nicole Sonoski, Southside HS

Reducing Image Sizes

     Suggestion for Windows XP

Using Vimeo

     Suggestions from Cecily Trenka

Locating Third-Party PowerPoints

    Suggestions from Brian Hugick (Somers H.S.)

Creating Animations and Instructional Games for Students 

    Suggestions from Charles Burrows (Spring Valley H.S.)

Animations and Visual Learning Aids               Hangman review Games               CharlesBurrows.com

Using “Course Kicker” (activities by Christopher Sipe)

Using ES Podcasts

      Let’s Get Down to Earth … Science (Podcast lessons by Michael Breed)

Using ES Songs

     ES Songs by Greg Flick

Evaluating the Best Educational Calculators
     Comprehensive List of Math Calculators

 


Web Quests

    A Complete Guide to Creating Web Quests (suggested by Anne Hughes, Monument Charter School)

    Turning Students into Strategic Researchers: Web Scavenger Hunts (Suggested by Ruth Clark)

     “Inside the Earth: Plate Tectonics Website” by Adrien Deshaies

Education Multimedia Visualization Center (Suggested by Ijaz Akhtar, Science Teacher Theater Arts Production Company School):
http://emvc.geol.ucsb.edu/downloads.php

Marco Polo — Internet Content for the Classroom

SERC (Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College):
“On the Cutting Edge: Professional Development for Geoscience Faculty.” 
Of particular interest:
Teaching Geoscience with Visualizations
Developing Effective Online Educational Resources in the Geosciences

Teachers’ Domain Multimedia resources for the Classroom and professional Development:
http://www.teachersdomain.org/

TERC HANDS-ON: A publication for mathematics and science educators (Fall/Winter 2003, v. 26, no. 2)  
“Teachers as Educational Designers” 
http://esbd.terc.edu/homepage/esbd_article.pdf

“Seven Deadly Sins of Power Point Presentations” from Dr. Joseph Sommerville
http://entrepreneurs.about.com/cs/marketing/a/7sinsofppt.htm

“ES Videos” by Rod Benson, Helena (MT) High School have recently posted several Earth Science-related videos on the Teacher Tube web site.  The videos, which show demonstrations and activities, are each about 3 minutes long.  The titles are listed below.

To view the videos, go to www.teachertube.com and then enter “Rod Benson” into the search box.  You will also find information about how to access student handouts, answer keys, etc.

SOFTWARE BASICS FOR ELEMENTARY TEACHERS (suggested by Lisa Richards)