Virtual Field Trips and Video Conferencing

I am truly excited about the possibilities that the virtual world has to offer the classroom. Through these opportunities, we as teachers have the ability to give our students a new medium for learning, engaging them without the cost of a physical field trip. I remember, as a student, being excited any time I had a class period that did something different than the norm. Whether it was a field trip or a movie, these breaks from lectures were helpful for my attentiveness. Also, for students of a practical mindset, these video conferences provide an opportunity to show the real life aspects or applications of whatever subject the students are learning. For those “when would we every use this information in ‘real life’” questions, professionals can attest to the learning of the material.

The prospect of collaborating with classes from other cities, states, or countries seems like an excellent opportunity for students to not only get a new perspective on what is being learned, but also to expose the students to diversity. I would be interested to collaborate with other Art teachers to see what projects were being done and for what reason. Collaborating with those teachers ahead of time, we could come up with creative ideas and do them at different times so when the students were able to “visit” with one another, they would have an opportunity to see real kids with their real artist samples. Through doing this, the students are able to see artwork that is within their zone of proximity as to not overwhelm them when beginning a project. These conferences would also give the students a chance to get excited about their upcoming projects.

By putting a main focus on meaning in art making, I find that having an engaging introduction into the lesson plan extremely important. I want my students to be able to easily find a subject matter that they can believe in and create in response to. For example, since artists often work off the ideas of symbols and semiotics, the virtual field trip “Smithsonian American Art Museum : America's Signs and Symbols” would give the students an opportunity to consider symbols they see often and whey they mean to them. This “field trip” could spark a discussion on symbols in general and how objects or images begin to hold meaning and how that changes what people think of those things.

I would like to research more video conferencing opportunities and see if I could get in touch with famous artists and discuss what motivates them to create and why they find art education to be important. Contemporary artists I would like to get in touch with include Chuck Close for his perseverance in creating and Barbara Kruger for the immense meaning in her images. I believe they would both have a lot to share about their life journey and why art is important to them. Along with these artists, some places I could only dream of taking students but hope to take one day through a virtual field trips would include the European and Middle Eastern cities in which large art galleries and ancient architectural sites are found. These beautiful sites have a lot of history along with them that could engage students through seeing through a direct and responsive camera.

There are many opportunities to teach through these relatively new technological mediums. My desire is to embrace these opportunities, combining them with traditional teaching methods to excite students about learning and help them realize the importance of it. Although there is limitless knowledge at our fingertips, I still find value in true understanding and knowing and my goal is help others feel confident in their critical thinking skills and their knowledge.

Michigan Standards 7 and NETS-T

What elements have been addressed so far in ED 483?

NETS – T

2 - Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments

Teachers design develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessments incorporating contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context and to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes identified in the NETS-S. Teachers:

b. develop technology-enriched learning environments that enable all students to pursue their individual curiosities and become active participants in setting their own educational goals, managing their own learning, and assessing their own progress

c. customize and personalize learning activities to address students’ diverse learning styles, working strategies, and abilities using digital tools and resources.

4 - Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility

Teachers understand local and global societal issues and responsibilities in an evolving digital culture and exhibit legal and ethical behavior in their professional practices. Teachers:

b. address the diverse needs of all learners by using learner-centered strategies and providing equitable access to appropriate digital tools and resources.

c. promote and model digital etiquette and responsible social interaction related to the use of technology and information

MICHIGAN STANDARDS

7. An ability to use information age learning and technology operations and concepts to enhance learning and personal/professional productivity, including the understanding and ability to:

c. Implement curriculum plans that include technology-enhanced methods and strategies to maximize student learning; 

d. Apply technology to facilitate a variety of effective assessment and evaluation strategies;

f. Understand the equity, ethical, legal, social, physical, and psychological issues surrounding the use of technology in P-12 schools and apply that understanding in practice.

Already, through the sessions of ED 483 that I have experienced, the knowledge that I have gained about how to make websites and forms effectively has greatly increased my future ability to fulfill these standards. I especially loved the idea of surveying students on the first day of class so they could ask questions or post their concerns for the subject matter. Through this, the students are given the opportunity to help construct their education or “become active participants in setting their own educational goals”. Using forms to survey students regularly would give me an chance to see what they are truly grasping and what subjects I need to spend more time on.

I also appreciate that through the technologies that I have learned thus far in the course, I have the ability to acquire diverse teaching methods. As we have discussed in ED 483, forums are great for students who are quieter in the classroom, and having a record of student discussions and questions could help us as teachers to see what our students need and how involved they are. If forums do not work as well for them however, they can always participate in the traditional classroom.

ED 483 class discussion and presentations about the influence of the Internet have also been helpful in my understanding of how to use technology in a professional and educational way. Learning about “Netiquette” and other ways people are teaching responsibility on the Internet has given me ideas on how to refer the same knowledge to my students, which I would have not considered before. Understanding these concepts will be very important for students as they grow up, living a majority of their lives (whether we like it or not) online.

What elements would require the most amount of growth to achieve?

MICHIGAN STANDARDS

7. An ability to use information age learning and technology operations and concepts to enhance learning and personal/professional productivity, including the understanding and ability to:

a. Demonstrate an understanding of, and continued growth in, information age learning and technology operations and concepts;

e. Use technology to enhance professional development, practice, and productivity; and

NETS-T

1               Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity

a.     Engage students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources

b.     Promote student reflection using collaborative tools to reveal and clarify student’s conceptual understanding and thing, planning and creative processes

c.      Model collaborative knowledge construction by engaging in learning with students, colleagues, and others in face-to-face and virtual environments.

2               Model Digital-Age Work and Learning

a.     demonstrate fluency in technology systems and the transfer of current knowledge to new technologies and situations.

b.     Model and facilitate effective use of current and emerging digital tools to locate, analyze, evaluate, and use information.

                        5              Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership

 

c.           evaluate and reflect on current research and professional practice on a regular basis to make effective use of existing and emerging digital tools and resources in support of student learning.

Though I am starting to learn, through this course, the effective ways to use technology for our benefit in the classroom, I’m worried that I will need help to continually learn how to use the best available technology to teach in the future. With the fast, rapid pace that technology improves and grows, how is it possible to stay on top of everything? I’m afraid I’ll always need a teacher to show me what I should be using to help me. However, perhaps with a little direction I can find ways to keep up to date on my own.

My other concern is how to best apply all this technology in such a way that inspires creative ideas and innovation. I understand how we can use these tools to assess students and give them different modes to discuss, but how can using technology really help their critical thinking skills more so than traditional methods?

The Positive Effects of Technology

 It can be difficult to determine all of the positive effects of technology as it penetrates the lives of first world cultures. Daily, we all interact with some form of technology in one way or another. Though many might see this reliance on technology a source of disconnect, the advancement of technology has given us the ability to accomplish every day tasks with ease and know more about the world around us. 

Personally, I do not consider myself the most technologically sound person. However, I am able to make my way and appreciate the technology that I use often. For starters, I, like so many others, am completely reliant on my cell phone. Not only to stay connected to my friends, family, and co-workers, but I also use it as a planner, an alarm clock, and watch. I have all of these applications without even owning a smart phone, of which I’m sure I would be even more dependent. Secondly, my laptop is a quintessential part of my daily life as a student and an artist. Through my Mac book, I am able to stay more organized and reference word spellings through applications such as stickies and dictionary. 

Most importantly, my laptop gives me the option to access the Internet, perhaps one of the greatest advancements of technological era. Being able to have the possibility to research any given topic and have it be made available to you in minutes gives us unlimited opportunities. So much knowledge can be gained from simply “surfing the web”, it truly makes this era the “information age”. Through the Internet, we can always find ways to be entertained through social networking, and watching videos. Social networking specifically gives me the opportunity to make groups for the communities I work in and gives me the ability to organize these communities. These groups allow me to spread important information as well as simply contacting people in a quick and efficient manner. As a Resident Advisor and Community Advisor, these tools are extremely important and useful to interact with my residents or tenants. 

Overall, technology has given me the opportunity to be entertained, to hone my interests and taste in all artistic realms, to stay organized and to keep connected with other individuals. Even outside of the Internet, there are many modes of technology that makes our lives easier such as plumbing, refrigeration, and electricity. Often we take these things for granted as common fixtures in life, but I try to remember how lucky I am to have all of these possibilities be part of my everyday life.