Applications of Computers to Educational Purposes
PROJECTS
Each week, you will be assigned a project that you will begin in class and finish at home. You will find the guidelines for each of the projects here. Keep in mind, though, these are just guidelines. Your task is to use the tech tools creatively. You will also create a project page on your website where you will submit your projects.
Project 1
Design a simple website that will serve as a working space for you throughout this course. Your website should have at least 4 pages, including
1) A Home Page - This should provide information about your website. Include at least one picture. You might also choose to include a quote or two, an "about me" section, your thoughts about teaching and learning, or anything else you dream up.
2) Projects Page - You will submit your projects here
3) Resources Page - This is a place for you to keep track of links, tools, and resources that you want to use again.
4) Blog Page - Most weeks, you will be asked to think about a topic and blog on it
You could also include other pages and sub pages, such as an "about me" page or a contact page.
Post your website on our
Class Websites Padlet - Morning Class
Class Websites Padlet - Afternoon Class
Example of past class website 1
Example of past class website 2
Due: October 13
Project 2
1. Create an assessment using one of the formative assessment tech tools, such as
2. After you have created your assessment, work in a group of 4-5 to take each others' assessments.
3. Once others have taken your assessment, evaluate your data and represent it using a data representation tool, such as
Due: October 17th
Project 3
Create a set of criteria to help you evaluate an ELR (Electronic Learning Resource)
1) Review the existing evaluative criteria
2) Develop a set of criteria that you can use to determine whether or not to use a resource
3) Put your criteria into a presentation (include images)
4) Post your presentation with your images to your website in the Projects tab
Project 4
Today you will be learning more about blended learning and creating a blended learning lesson for students. Ideally, the lesson you create is one that you can use in your class - either your next placement, or something you might be teaching down the line.
Begin by watching the video on blended learning (password: ed325), introducing you to some apps and tools for blended learning. This video was done with a combination of QuickTime, NearPod, and other distance learning sites and apps. After you watch the introduction to blended learning and some select apps, complete the project, following the directions below. If the video below doesn't work, you can go to this link: https://vimeo.com/238674511 and enter the password.
Your task today is to create a flipped or blended lesson. You are encouraged to work with a partner.
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Begin by browsing each of the tools. Decide tool to use to create your lesson.
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Create your lesson using one of the tools.
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Post your completed lesson to the Projects page on your website.
*** A final note: Your lesson must have an interactive component. This means that if you choose an app that does not have an interactive component built in, then you need to also use another tool like Socrative, GoogleForms, PollEverywhere, or another one to create an interactive component.
Due: November 3
Project 5
Web-Based Inquiry
Today, we are focusing on web-based inquiry. First, you will have a chance to explore some webquests and figure out what makes for a good webquest. Then, you will create a web-based inquiry for your students.
Part 1 - What Makes for a Good Web-Based Inqury?
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In a group of 4, check out this webquest on webquests. While you don't need to do the webquest, take some time to browse around the site and get familiar with how to structure a webquest. http://webquest.org/sdsu/webquestwebquest.html
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Go to the Resources page and examine 3-5 webquests in your content area or other content areas
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As you are looking through these websites, add your ideas of what makes for a good web-based inquiry to our back channel discussion on Today's Meet
Part 2 - Create a Web-Based Inqury or Simulation
Using what you now know about web-based inquiry, create a web-based inquiry for students to complete. This should be posted to your website. It should include
1. A task for students to do
2. Procedures for the task
3. Web-based resources for them to use
4. Criteria for evaluation
5. Roles for students (optional)
Due April 12
Project 6
Creating a Personal Learning Network (PLN)
Personal or Professional Learning Networks (PLNs) can be a great way to enter larger conversations and participate in professional development. Existing social media tools like Twitter and Edmodo make this easy. Your task today will be to familiarize yourself with PLNs, and begin to build one of your own. Follow the steps below to get started.
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Begin by reading through this online course on PLNs. You do not need to do each of the tasks in the course, but you should read the content and watch some of the videos
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Create a Twitter account that you will use for your PLN. Select at least 10-12 other Twitter accounts to follow. You can find more information about this on steps 2 and 3 of the online course, and on the Resources page of this website.
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Follow @edtech325. Tweet to @edtech325, tag a Twitter account you chose to follow, and include a hashtag. Add your Twitter handle to your website
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Select a curation tool (see step 6 of the online course) that you have NOT used before. Add content to your curation tool
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Select and participate in an online webinar that is related to your teaching practice. (Note, you can attend the webinar at a later date.)
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Blog about this week's blog post topic
Due April 19th
Project 7
Digital Citizenship
For this topic, you will explore digital citizenship and literacy to better understand it yourself, and to think about how you will address it with your students. Complete the high school or middle school training, and do the steps below. (Note, the HS and MS training are VERY similar, so it really doesn’t matter which one you pick.)
The training is broken into 11 steps. Below is an outline of those steps and the tasks that I would like you to do with each of them. If there are no tasks listed, you can just read through or watch the information provided.
High School Training
https://www.commonsense.org/education/training/9-12/welcome
Middle School Training
https://www.commonsense.org/education/training/6-8/welcome
1. Overview of what the training is about
In a blog post, respond to the questions and prompts below. You should capture all of these in one blog post.
2. Information on teens/tweens and Development and how that relates to technology.
a. Write down three facts about teens/tweens and technology, including one from the infographic
b. Identify one challenge and one opportunity that relates to your students given today’s technology landscape
3. What does digital citizenship mean to you?
a. What are the 4 C’s of digital citizenship?
b. Which topics of digital citizenship do your students struggle with? Which are they strong in?
c. How might you engage different stakeholders in digital citizenship?
4. Overview of resources available
Look at the scope and sequence for middle school or high school and see how the lessons are organized. Choose at least one on a topic of interest. You will need to sign in to download and view the materials. Add this to the resources page on your website.
5-8. Check out some of the resources available. Find the digital compass - choose one character to follow their story and interact with it as if you were a student. Who was the character you chose and what was the scenario? In your blog post, include an evaluation of the materials you looked at. Do you think you might use them with students? Why or why not?
9-10. If you want to get a certificate, you can complete the survey. (You could include this on your CV.)
Project 8
Virtual and Augmented Reality
QR Codes
QR (Quick Response) Codes are a way to get information to others in a quick and efficient way.
Read about some possible ways to use QR codes. If you teach math, read about using scannable tech in math.
Use a QR code generator such as this one to create a QR code that is linked to content. I also really like the QR Scanner app by Purch. You can choose to link to a website, YouTube video, or rich content that you create. Post it to your website on the Projects Page
AR App
AR (Augmented Reality) can add an extra dimension to what students are learning. Check out some of the possibilities for AR apps in this article.
And this article. The best, free AR app that I have found is Aurasma/HP Reveal.
Choose an AR app to download and practice with. Create an activity for your students to do using AR and post it to the Projects Page on your website
VR Apps
VR (Virtual Reality) is a way to create a virtual experience that you would not otherwise be able to access. You can take your students on virtual field trips, do virtual science experiments, and open up worlds that your students might not otherwise get to experience.
These are some of my favorite VR apps:
Google Cardboard – Gives an overview of using Google Cardboard and links to other Google VR apps
Google Expeditions – Allows you to “guide” students on expeditions (links to Google Classroom) or send students on their own expedition
Google Street View – allows you to view various places and also contribute to content
NYT VR – Has both current events and historical events (e.g. bombing of Hiroshima). One drawback is that it can be really slow to load
Within – This app has short documentaries about different places
Discovery VR – Hosted by the Discovery channel and is focused mostly on science and nature
Choose an app to download and experiment with using the VR viewers.
