Monday, February 2, 2009

TurnItIn Tutorials

Here is a site with tutorials on TurnItIn.com

http://www.salisbury.edu/Library/tlr/turnitin/tutorials.html

Sunday, February 1, 2009

NETS for Teachers 2008

The new 2008 National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers (NETS•T) published by the International Society for Technology and Education (ISTE) raises expectations for educators using technologies. NETS•T assumes that educators embrace constructivist philosophy and pedagogy to provide students with 21st century, world-class level learning experiences. See: http://www.iste.org/content/navigationmenu/nets/forteachers/2008standards/nets_for_teachers_2008.htm

The major planks of NETS•T are:
  1. Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity
  2. Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments
  3. Model Digital-Age Work and Learning
  4. Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility
  5. Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership
The underlying principles of NETS•T require educators to think and work with constructivist principles such as: (1) creativity, inventiveness and innovation; (2) authentic learning experiences and assessment, (3) collaborative processes; and (4) building a learning community. NETS•T appear to be rejecting principles based on the "transmission model" or "teacher-centered" / "curriculum centered" philosophies and pedagogies.

High Noon: 20 Global Problems, 20 Years to Solve Them

Rischard, J. (2003) High Noon: 20 Global Problems, 20 Years to Solve Them
New York: Basic Books.

http://www.amazon.com/High-Global-Problems-Years-Solve/dp/0465070108/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1233526418&sr=8-1

This is not a book about constructivism, but it is one that interacts with readers in a constructivist manner: It challenges readers to reflect, think, discuss with others, and act to understand and solve global problems. Teachers can use this as a resource, handbook or textbook for a constructivist unit or course.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

A summary of constructivism

I found the following interesting - a summary of constructivism ...

(from: http://hagar.up.ac.za/catts/learner/lindavr/lindapg1.htm)

  • emphasises learning and not teaching
  • encourages and accepts learner autonomy and initiative
  • sees learners as creatures of will and purpose
  • thinks of learning as a process
  • encourages learner inquiry
  • acknowledges the critical role of experience in learning
  • nurtures learners natural curiosity
  • takes the learner's mental model into account
  • emphasises performance and understanding when assessing learning
  • bases itself on the principles of the cognitive theory
  • makes extensive use of cognitive terminology such as predict, create and analyze
  • considers how the student learns
  • encourages learners to engage in dialogue with other students and the teacher
  • supports co-operative learning
  • involves learners in real world situations
  • emphasises the context in which learning takes place
  • considers the beliefs and attitudes of the learner
  • provides learnersthe opportunity to construct new knowledge and understanding from authentic experience

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Constructivism and computers

Interesting chart showing the partnership between tech/computers and constructivism:

http://hagar.up.ac.za/catts/learner/ameyer/constructivismandtechnology.htm

Monday, January 5, 2009

Text Book Suggestion

Pearson has a helpful and interesting text - third edition - on how to use technology in the classroom. One section refers to blogs and wikis in education. Mary

Meaningful Learning with Technology ISBN -13 978-0-13-239395-9

Sunday, January 4, 2009

APA style guide

For a graphical representation of how to cite online and database articles, refer to this link:

http://www.marybeckmann.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/online_database_apa_sample.pdf