Online Teaching and Learning

I am excited to hear that technology will be such a huge part in education. I think this is a great step for our schools!! I was intrigued by the list of activities that qualify as an online experience for students. Many of the items listed are ones that I use regularly. In my science class I incorporate podcasts into my instruction. I have found a great feed that provides interactive songs about different animal species. To add to that, I would like to set up an ePortfolio for my students. Through this portfolio they could compile all of their science experiments write-ups. This would give them an opportunity to showcase all of the time and effort they put forth into their experiment. They could upload their write-up, any graphs, photos, or additional projects for their experiments.

When I use the podcasts in the classroom I fall back on a didactic approach. I present the students with the materials, and then they take what they have learned and apply it. However, with the ePortfolios I hope to become more of a "guide on the side," allowing my students to take charge. I would be available for technical support and to provide guidelines as to what to upload, but I would like my students to take responsibility for the task. That way they can really call it their own, and take pride in their portfolio.

I know using an ePortfolio will be challenging at first, but I am confident in my students ability. As long as we review the basics needed to carry out the task, they should have no problems. In the future I look to further my technology applications by possible incorporating Moodle or similar applications into my classroom. This will definitely be a challenge for myself as well as my students when the day comes. They biggest hurdle with this will be making sure all of my students are able to log on at home, or from a location other than school. As of now, not all on my students have easy access to the Internet outside of school, so I need to make sure I keep this in mind when incorporating technology as I want to provide all of my students with the opportunity to succeed.