Wednesday, September 23, 2015
Assistive Technology
One of the IDEA disabilities under the umbrella of the autism spectrum is Asperger syndrome which a high functioning form of autism. It is often difficult to diagnose this form of autism because these individuals tend to have a higher form of communication skills than the average person with mainstream autism. Asperger syndrome is also difficult to diagnose because the person also tends to be very intelligent and smart, and one might not think to investigate if they have autism at all; however, their social skills are usually lacking as is true with traditional autism. Persons with Asperger's also tend to suffer from high anxiety and depression as well as autism because of the lack of others to understand their underdeveloped social skills.
One assistive technology that may help the Asperger patient is an iPad or tablet, or a laptop computer. Like most persons with autism, computer communication is preferred to face-to-face communication. The Asperger student may wish to receive school assignments by email which may actually reduce anxiety by helping them to remember the assignments since they are in writing. Also, they may feel more comfortable communicating with teachers by computer. There is an organization based at OSU called Assistive Technology of Ohio which offers great resources for persons with this type of disability. The website at www.atohio.org helps individuals with disabilities to get assistive technology equipment like computers and tablets at a deep discount.
There is also a very good You Tube video by a very informative young lady named Chriselle G. Ly titled, "Three Apps for Anxiety and Depression". In the video, Ms. Ly gives the names of three very helpful mobile applications that she has utilized to help with her own anxiety and depression. The link is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2MH0122EXI . Mobile apps are especially good because most students have cell phones with them all of the time and can therefore utilize the applications whenever they need them. The three applications that Ms. Ly mentions are:
Pacifica
http://www.thinkpacifica.com
Buddha Board
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/buddh...
Louise Hay Affirmation
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/louis...
I feel that there will be more effective and accessible mobile applications in the future as well as improvements made with computers and tablets. Computers and tablets are being made smaller with more memory and speed. Additionally, it is difficult to keep up with all of the different mobile applications being created. It has been estimated that 91% of the U.S. population owns cell phones, so the mobile application future looks very bright.
References:
http://businessdegrees.uab.edu/resources/infographic/the-future-of-mobile-application/
www.atohio.org
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2MH0122EXI
http://www.thinkpacifica.com
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/louis...
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/buddh...
Ohio DL Schools
Ohio has an impressive group of e-schools available to students who may not be good candidates for traditional schools. I have examined five of them, and here are some of my observations.
The e-schools that we examined for this assignment have been around for a while, and I think that most of them know what they are doing. I particularly liked Connections Academy website because it gave access to great information right there on the home page about test results, curriculum, enrollment instructions and a general overview of the school. Virtual Community School of Ohio was user friendly because it had plenty of push tabs for easy access to information, but the picture quality was not the best. ECOT won points for having video links on the home page as well as a very large and clear enrollment icon. The http://virtualschoolhouse.org website also had big tabs, and a current school calendar which is always appreciated by parents. I think that I liked Ohio Virtual Academy the least because it had too many links, and looked disorganized and unattractive.
If I had to choose a favorite between the schools, I think that I like Connections Academy the most because I had heard of it before, and they offer a wide variety of courses. I also liked the website the best because it was user-friendly and had all of the information that I would look for as a parent. I think that I would not be likely to choose Ohio Virtual Academy because the website was not appealing to me, and I probably would tend to think that the curriculum would not be organized either; and, even though that may not necessarily be the case, I guess that first impressions do make a powerful impression.
All of this being said, I do like the idea of e-schools. I believe they are the wave of the future as people become more busy and lifestyles are not a traditional as they used to be. I like having options regarding education. There are some misgivings about whether an online education is a quality education. Also, if my child was going to be educated a home, I would want to be there to take him on field trips, and to help him with assignments and to stay on track when needed.
The e-schools that we examined for this assignment have been around for a while, and I think that most of them know what they are doing. I particularly liked Connections Academy website because it gave access to great information right there on the home page about test results, curriculum, enrollment instructions and a general overview of the school. Virtual Community School of Ohio was user friendly because it had plenty of push tabs for easy access to information, but the picture quality was not the best. ECOT won points for having video links on the home page as well as a very large and clear enrollment icon. The http://virtualschoolhouse.org website also had big tabs, and a current school calendar which is always appreciated by parents. I think that I liked Ohio Virtual Academy the least because it had too many links, and looked disorganized and unattractive.
If I had to choose a favorite between the schools, I think that I like Connections Academy the most because I had heard of it before, and they offer a wide variety of courses. I also liked the website the best because it was user-friendly and had all of the information that I would look for as a parent. I think that I would not be likely to choose Ohio Virtual Academy because the website was not appealing to me, and I probably would tend to think that the curriculum would not be organized either; and, even though that may not necessarily be the case, I guess that first impressions do make a powerful impression.
All of this being said, I do like the idea of e-schools. I believe they are the wave of the future as people become more busy and lifestyles are not a traditional as they used to be. I like having options regarding education. There are some misgivings about whether an online education is a quality education. Also, if my child was going to be educated a home, I would want to be there to take him on field trips, and to help him with assignments and to stay on track when needed.
Saturday, September 12, 2015
My Prezi
Here is a link to my Prezi titled: "What Make a Teacher Great?"
This Prezi is intended to be viewed by adults who want to be inspired to be better educators. It examines what makes certain teachers stand out above the norm - the qualities and skills that make great teachers. One may be surprised to learn that many of the skills covered in this Prezi can be acquired with practice and patience. As an education administrator who has always admired the dedication of great teachers, I seek to explore and honor what makes them so. I hope that my Prezi is enjoyed by all who view it.
Some of the qualities covered in this Prezi are mastery of subject matter, enthusiasm, being a good story teller, utilizing current technology, as well as other things. Many of the orators, authors and business professionals given reference in this Prezi gained their skills by practice over and over again. Although natural ability is an asset, I truly believe that it can be enhanced with practice over time. And, I also believe that we all have some natural ability.
Before utilizing the Prezi software for this project, I did not even know that it existed. I honestly did not realize that there are so many areas of study that could benefit from technology so easily. Great technology is literally right at our fingertips! I like the fact that Prezi software is easy to figure out even if one is fairly computer literate like myself. I am by no means one of those individuals who spends most of her time at the computer, and yet, I've managed to create a Prezi and post it to my blog! It was a bit difficult to figure out how to embed it to my blog - but, now that I've figured that out, I see that it was not really that difficult at all. Overall, I like Prezi a lot.
This Prezi is intended to be viewed by adults who want to be inspired to be better educators. It examines what makes certain teachers stand out above the norm - the qualities and skills that make great teachers. One may be surprised to learn that many of the skills covered in this Prezi can be acquired with practice and patience. As an education administrator who has always admired the dedication of great teachers, I seek to explore and honor what makes them so. I hope that my Prezi is enjoyed by all who view it.
Some of the qualities covered in this Prezi are mastery of subject matter, enthusiasm, being a good story teller, utilizing current technology, as well as other things. Many of the orators, authors and business professionals given reference in this Prezi gained their skills by practice over and over again. Although natural ability is an asset, I truly believe that it can be enhanced with practice over time. And, I also believe that we all have some natural ability.
Before utilizing the Prezi software for this project, I did not even know that it existed. I honestly did not realize that there are so many areas of study that could benefit from technology so easily. Great technology is literally right at our fingertips! I like the fact that Prezi software is easy to figure out even if one is fairly computer literate like myself. I am by no means one of those individuals who spends most of her time at the computer, and yet, I've managed to create a Prezi and post it to my blog! It was a bit difficult to figure out how to embed it to my blog - but, now that I've figured that out, I see that it was not really that difficult at all. Overall, I like Prezi a lot.
Monday, September 7, 2015
Three Great Teacher Blogs
Here are three great blogs that I like:
- Love Those Kinders - I like this blog because the teacher has posted a lot of pictures and videos of her kindergarten class, so, they are the "stars" of the blog. Also, she takes the time to share quite a bit of personal information about herself. She shares pictures of the farm where she and her husband live which is a very nice personal touch.
- The Daring Librarian - This blog is pretty cool. The avatar of the creator is great - it actually looks like her! But, what I like most about this blog is the dark animation, not is a creepy way, but the artistic value of utilizing dark colors and comic book like characters, would actually appeal to teenagers. Also, her blog is updated with posts that are current.
- Edutopia - this blog is supported by a great techie, George Lucas. I like it because, in addition to offering videos and a variety of blogger topics, it also has some neat games to play.
Welcome to My Blog
I am an education enthusiast! My mother always encouraged me and my sister and brother to get an education. It took me quite some time, but I took it to heart. As a result, I was the first person in my family to obtain a degree - actually, I have three! I feel that we all learn from unexpected sources on a daily basis. We are constantly taking in information from one another, the Internet, the media, and the ever changing world around us. So, in my opinion, education is ongoing and constant.
There is nothing quite like a great teacher. Teachers have the ability to shape thoughts, thoughts shape actions, and actions shape lives - quite powerful when you really think about it. I worked as an administrator for five charter schools in Columbus when I first came here - I was asked to come by the school superintendent - and, I respected all of the teachers. They gained my respect because they were on the front lines, in the trenches, so to speak, with the students and the parents every school day of the week. It is not easy work, but can be very rewarding for the teacher and the student.
This blog will celebrate the best teachers who utilize technology in their teaching methods. They are the forerunners... not afraid to take the lead in advancing onto new horizons. Technology will play a major role in how education is disseminated in the future. Teachers who utilize technology now with their students are sharing a precious gift that will travel into future generations.
There is nothing quite like a great teacher. Teachers have the ability to shape thoughts, thoughts shape actions, and actions shape lives - quite powerful when you really think about it. I worked as an administrator for five charter schools in Columbus when I first came here - I was asked to come by the school superintendent - and, I respected all of the teachers. They gained my respect because they were on the front lines, in the trenches, so to speak, with the students and the parents every school day of the week. It is not easy work, but can be very rewarding for the teacher and the student.
This blog will celebrate the best teachers who utilize technology in their teaching methods. They are the forerunners... not afraid to take the lead in advancing onto new horizons. Technology will play a major role in how education is disseminated in the future. Teachers who utilize technology now with their students are sharing a precious gift that will travel into future generations.
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