IEP

For my technology IEP I didn’t have a lot of options. The math class that I taught was calculus (which gives a lot of possibilities), but in the classroom that I was teaching there was not much as far as technology was concerned. There were basically two white boards, markers and desks and chairs. So I made the best out of it that I could, and made my lesson plans to work with the two white boards and graphing calculators that are needed for calculus. I felt little uneasy doing a technology assignment about using white boards, but that was what I had. In the trig class that runs during the same time as the calculus class, the other math teacher has a tablet pc and a projector. So, I feel like the methods that I used in forming and implementing these lessons could easily be translated to a pc tablet and made available for print and online.

When I first started giving lessons in calculus, I only had one white board and I noticed how long it took to get through a lesson, so I found another white board to use. For better understanding of the situation I should illustrate what the white boards looked like and their structure. The first board that I had was made of wood and had wheels. It was nice a nice board, except it wasn’t very sturdy so every time you wrote something it would wobble. It was like trying to write on a solid wall in an earthquake. The second board that I brought into the classroom had a metal frame and was very sturdy, but it wasn’t mobile.

So, when I first got both my method of usage was to just write across the boards until I ran out of room and then would go back to the beginning of the boards like my college math professors would do, but I felt that it was too sloppy. After some thinking and experimenting with the boards I decided that it was best if I wrote all the theorems and properties (basically all the notes) on what I called board #1 and work examples with the class on board #2. I chose board #1 as the “notes” board, because I was doing a lot less writing and erasing on board #1. I used board #2 as the “example” board since it was more sturdy and easier to write on. I found that this made the class move much more smoothly and efficiently. After I figured this out I built lesson plans for “logarithmic, exponential and other transcendental functions” around this and then implemented them during a month and a bit (it took longer then I thought due to student travel and school vacations). I got great use out of those two boards and it made the class much smoother both for the students and me. Check out my lesson plans below to see my method.

It should be noted that during these lesson plans we used graphing calculators every class, if there wasn’t graphing to be done there was certainly formulas that needed to be programmed in and used. In these lesson plans there were no programs needed, but in the lessons preceding there were.

Lesson Plan #1

Lesson Plan#2

Lesson Plan #3

Lesson Plan #4

Lesson Plan #5

Lesson Plan #6

Online Community

After some looking around on the internet for a quality online community for math, I stumbled upon one, "Math Forum". This website has a lot to offer both math teachers and students. The website covers areas of mathematics from elementary mathematics to college mathematics to math literature with thousands of topics open for discussion. It allows for members to post problems that they might have or need help with, as well as giving members a chance to work on their own math skills while helping other members. The site also covers topics that are related to math, but considered a different topic, such as physics and computers. The website also includes a sections for weekly problems and puzzles. It also has a links page that can lead you to other great sites related to mathematics. Another great feature is the messaging service so you can contact other members without giving up your email address.

This site is very active, with members over 2000 members, there are postings of questions and replies daily. This online community will provide me with the opportunity to get help with questions that I have, as well as work on my skills as a math teacher. This site will also help me get ideas for anticipatory sets and math lessons. The site itself could be used as an assignment, by requiring students to participate as a member, kind of like this class. I have enjoyed browsing around and being a part of this website.

Math Forum

Digital Story

My Digital Story is about my journey from childhood to adulthood, and how I came to be a teacher. I was able to get some great pictures from my childhood, around the village of Klukwan, and my current job at Haines High School. I felt like the story just kind of came together. At first I didn’t know what I wanted to say, but after I got rolling it came along nicely.

The story really touches on how I felt growing up and the pressures of wanting to succeed at my goal of becoming a teacher, not only for myself, but also for my family. At times it was a real struggle. Creating the story made me take a step back and helped me put all this hard work that I have been doing the past six years into perspective. I think that this is a good story and I am looking forward to sharing it with friends and family. Check it out.

Digital Story Rubric

Digital Story

Websites

The websites that I choose below are all important in different ways. The first one is a great resource for educators, students, and parents. It provides everything from resources to professional development to online tools, as well as forums for communication about everything mathematics for people across the U.S. The second is great for teachers of all subjects. It can provide teachers from all grades interdisciplinary lesson plans and resources that can spice up their units. The last website that is listed is one of many calculator programming websites. Graphing calculators are necessary for upper level math classes in both high school and college, so it is important that students understand how they work and get supplemental programming with them.

Math Forum

PBS Teachers

TI Calc Programs

Assistive Tech for reading

I think that the programs in the article sound good. I do have a few concerns. One is would the students become too reliant on the technologies to help them read? It seems to me that when you learn something in a certain way or context then that becomes the way that you understand it. The other concern that I have is that in the reading it states that these programs are under used by teachers for students who have learning disabilities, but it seems that if the teacher didn’t commit to these technologies and only have heartedly used them it would hold back some students instead of help them. But to me if you had a teacher that had the program and believed in using it properly, then they could be effective.

Article Overview (this link takes you to my assignment)

Overdominance of Computers

“The Overdominance of Computers”

By: Lowell W. Monke

Overview:

This article discusses the positive and negative aspects of kids being put in the middle of a computer rich environment before they may be ready for it. Most people have some form of technology that they use daily if not hourly. This article addresses the effects it can have on young minds when they aren’t ready for the responsibility it brings. It asks the question, “Do computers help achievement?” While the study found that the more that student’s are exposed to computers the more it seems to hurt their achievement levels. They also stated that overexposure to computers and technology can create an altered view of the world in which students live in. It can hinder the learning process by robbing them of authentic experiences. The remedy to prevent this type of situation is to fill student’s early education with the types of experiences that will foster their creativity and create strong bonding experiences. The article stresses that this situation should not be overlooked. The fact is that technology is not going away, and it is time to start really taking a look at the effects that too much computers can have.

Reference Points:

1) “Nearly everything children do today involves technologies that distance them from direct contact with the living world.”

2) “...the more access students had to computers in school and at home, the lower their overall test scores were.”

3) 80 percent of kindergarten students used a computer in school in 2003

4) “Nearly everything that a child does today – from chatting with friends to listening to music to playing games – tends to involve the use of technologies that distance children from direct contact with the living world.

5) “How can young people develop the wisdom to judge high technology if they are told from the moment the enter school, implicitly if not explicitly, that they need high-tech tools to learn, to communicate, to think?”

Reflection:

This article gave me some good insight into something that I had never really thought about before. It sucked me in with the first paragraph. We don’t prepare kids for drinking by giving them alcohol when they are young, so why should we be almost forcing computers and technology on them when they are clearly not ready for everything that comes with it. I think that exposure is good for students at a young age, but overexposure to anything is bad. Something else that isn’t really mentioned here is video games. Between video games and computers a young child’s perception of the world around them can become very distorted and unreal. Children need the real life experience and the understanding that computers and other forms of technology are tools and not a way to experience life.

Umms and Ahhhhs

For my Energy Conservation Project I looked at the fuel consumption of mine and my wifes cars. I gave the presentation at Mt. Edgecumbe High School in my math classroom. After seeing the video a couple 10-12 times. I know that I could have had a better presentation.

I think that I did pretty well with my umms and ahhs. I only counted three aaaaaaaa's. Which is about what I would expect. I felt that my hand gestures and movements were pretty good as well. Watching the video you can tell that I didn't really prepare for shooting the presentation. I thought that the lighting was poor, and I kept leaning in front of the projector light. My eye contact was less then I would have liked. I should have had something to read from maybe, or someone holding up some cue cards :) I think that I would have done better if I had written it out, then maybe I wouldn't have fumbled on some of my wording. It would have been nice to have a pointer, but I think that my finger pointing was alright.

Overall I think that I could have done better, but I am satisfied with what I produced.